In the middle of a fantasy
by silvergirl1000
Summary: A mission gone wrong, meeting with the two feared Akatsuki, tortured to get information. When will it end? Looks like Itachi isn't doing any better actually. Kakaita, AU, Yaoi, spoilers, torture
1. A mission gone awry

**In the middle of a fantasy**

A/N: This story came straight from my mind. I know that a lot of people must've already tried this, but I wanted to try it too. I found this pairing while I was watching a Naruto episode in jetix; the part where Itachi and Kisame fought Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma. Then it hit me: what about Kakaita/Itakaka?! Another crazy pairing has been added to my list! It seemed totally cute, now that I think about it.

Anyway, this takes place during the chunin exams, after Sasuke got that mark and before he met Itachi again. Itachi and Kisame come to Konoha sooner than they should. :) Enjoy!

Warnings: Yaoi, torture, AU and some spoilers. Possible (but not likely) sexual content.

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 1 – A mission gone awry**

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"Your team's in the middle of the chunin exams, you can't take them." Iruka told firmly to the other man before him. "Besides, it's only a mission where you have to extract some information, it wont take that long." Iruka smiled, but it did nothing to help the copy-nin in front of him.

Kakashi sighed and scratched the back of his head. "Can I at least take another jounin? It would be easier." Iruka looked through some papers and after a few moments he shook his head.

"Since no one wants to miss anything of the chunin exams, then there's only Gai left... he was one of the two who was willing to go on a mission right now. Although I think it's pointless that people fear that they'll miss anything. The genin are still training and after a few months do they start the actual fighting." He replied, placing the papers back into a correct order, "You could take Gai, but since it's a mission where you have to get information, then it would be better if there weren't that much people."

"Never mind then, I'd rather go alone than go with that vegetable. Okay, I will go and pack my things and then leave." Kakashi said, his eye arching into a smile as he poofed out of the room.

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Kakashi sighed as he finally got out of the Konoha's borders. He'd given Sasuke his last minute instructions on how he should practise the Chidori. He had a last-minute rock-paper-scissor competition with Gai. And he had to wrestle with Naruto who wanted to come along with him and fortunately he'd won (Not really, he just poofed away when Naruto got too annoying). His back still hurt from when Naruto surprise-tackled him to the ground. The boy sure lived up to his nick-name; the number one knuckle-headed ninja of surprising people.

He mentally checked everything he needed to know about the mission and picked up his pace. He needed to go to the sound country to get some information on Orochimaru. Sounds easy, right? Wrong! He had to make sure no one, absolutely no one saw him go towards that place, because you can never be too careful. He then had to get information of the place where Orochimaru was. And then infiltrate it somehow. Kakashi had experience on these things and he knew that B ranked missions that sounded easy, were everything _but_ easy.

He wouldn't get there with just one night and getting ambushed was one of the many options in his head that could happen. _Good thing I have the sharingan AND I'm a former ANBU member,_ Kakashi thought with a smile. He didn't really worry about missions and he didn't do so on this one either. It was just another mission. No need to worry... no problems.

Kakashi just kept walking, watching the nature around him. A bird flew above him, there was no wind anywhere, a river ran somewhere nearby, a leaf fell to the soft grass below...

Kakashi stopped walking and turned to stare at the tree where the leaf had fallen from. An enemy? This close? That means that they had wanted to infiltrate Konoha.

"Come out, I know you're there." He finally decided to shout out. Better him than Konoha. His eye widened though, when there appeared two men before him. One of him he recognized as Kisame Hoshigaki, because of the blue skin that he saw under the hat. But his eyes stayed on the other, shorter form... with red eyes.

_Sharingan..._ Kakashi slowly thought, his face immediately contorted into seriousness, but his head buzzed with questions.

"Kakashi-san..." Itachi slowly said, as if to get every ounce of Kakashi's attention, even though that wasn't necessary anymore.

"Itachi. I'm surprised you dared to come so close to Konoha again after what you did here, after what you did to Sasuke." Talking to a S class criminal wasn't new to him, but talking with the Uchiha who wiped out the entire Uchiha clan, excluding Sasuke... well, that's a new one to him.

"Kakashi-san... we don't want to hurt anyone. We're just looking for something and we know that it's here." His voice was still blank, emotionless.

"Want me to get rid of him, Itachi?" Kisame asked with a toothy grin. Itachi didn't even spare a glance at the other and said, "No, your way is unefficient. The noise you would cause would make many ANBU members to come instantly. And we don't want to make any unnecessary mess here."

Kakashi was silent the whole conversation; he was thinking. I mean, who wouldn't start wracking his brain when coming face to face with Uchiha Itachi?! He knew that even Naruto would start using his under-used brain for some sort of a plan, no matter how unuseful it'd be against the Uchiha.

_The chidori? Oh come on, Kakashi, you can do better than that... Summoning jutsu? No, that would only delay my death and wouldn't do any damage to the enemy either. My nin-dogs would probably be taken on by Kisame and be killed too. But then what?!_

He quickly pulled his hitai-ate up to reveal his sharingan. But... if he truly was gonna be taken out, he was gonna at least die fighting.

"I guess we do have to do some useless fighting, eh Itachi?" Kisame snickered. "But since you wont let me fight, then I'll just relax and enjoy the show..." He went and sat down by a tree, relaxing fully, showing no signs of getting back up to fight.

Kakashi's attention now closed in on only Itachi. Well, if he'd truly be attacked by Kisame behind his back, then he'd at least spot his movement before he'd get to even touch him with that... thing.

"Kakashi-san, have you trained that sharingan eye well?" Itachi asked slowly.

_What?_ Kakashi thought. "Enough to beat you." He took out a kunai and ran towards the Uchiha.

Itachi dodged the kunai throws easily by sidestepping all of them, which only made Kakashi more annoyed and angry. But he kept himself cool; if he'd let anger take control of him, then the winner of the fight would be obvious.

He suddenly felt (rather than saw the shadow) a figure behind him, ready to hit him with something. He quickly dodged the kunai and kicked the shadow clone in the stomach, making it disappear. But the few seconds that he didn't pay attention to the other, that had been his mistake, and he knew it himself too. He just couldn't do anything about it anymore. But it seemed like Itachi hadn't take advantage of that few seconds at all, he was still standing there, staring at him.

"Do you know why the Uchiha clan is feared by all, Kakashi-san?" Itachi murmured quietly, so quietly, that Kakashi had to strain his ears to even hear any of the sentence.

"I could ask you if you know why I'm feared by all." Kakashi mentally chuckled at his own joke. No need to be so tense in the middle of a fight, no matter who you're fighting with.

Itachi narrowed his eyes and Kisame chuckled. "Man, he got you good, Itachi."

Itachi was quiet for a moment, but then... a smirk. And Kakashi knew that he was in trouble. And he was right. Of course he was right. He was always right.

"For the next three days you will feel nothing but pain, Kakashi-san." The smirk disappeared, before the sky turned red and the clouds turned black. That was what he saw, before he felt immense pain, caused by the lone figure in front of him. Pain, like he'd never felt before. Each and every sword that was pushed into him, felt eleven times more horrible than any sword he'd ever felt pushed through his limbs.

"Kakashi-san, this is pain." Itachi quietly said and slowly plunged two more swords in to the other man's chest.

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Kakashi fell to his knees after the whole ordeal. The tsukiyomi... he gasped for breath. Every blade that had sunken into the depths of his body, he remembered them all. He remembered each and every one of them clearly, especially the ones that had been pushed near his heart. For some reason, Itachi hadn't pushed any sword through his heart and he was glad for that. He was sure that he would've given up then.

"Wh... What... are you here... for?" He couldn't help but gasp for air, that experience had been truly painful. And his mind was really weak right now. He could barely move his arm anymore.

"We're after the Yondaime's legacy."

Kakashi's eyes widened, but he willed himself to relax. "You're... not working... alone... You're working for an organization... called Akatsuki..., am I right."

Itachi's eyes widened briefly and Kisame stood up. "Kisame, we're taking Kakashi-san back to the base."

Kisame quickly moved towards Kakashi. Kakashi froze; he was too weak to fight back, but he wasn't going to let them take him. Who knows what they'll do.

As Kisame approached, Kakashi saw his vision blurring. _NO! I'm not going to give up._

He slowly and rather sluggishly took out a kunai; which only made Kisame smirk. "Now now Kakashi. You don't want to get hurt anymore, do you?"

Kakashi ignored the remark and stayed on his guard. When Kisame slowly extended his arm to capture Kakashi, the copy-nin slashed him with the kunai. But, since he'd been too weak, he'd barely scratched the surface of the fish-man's skin. Blood barely oozed out of the cut and Kisame smirked again. "You're too weak to fight back. But, you'll be a nuiscance if I'd let you be awake the whole trip back to the base."

Suddenly Kakashi felt pain in the back of his head and he felt himself lose consciousness.


	2. Nothing is for naught

A/N: This story came straight from my mind. I know that a lot of people must've already tried this, but I wanted to try it too. I found this pairing while I was watching a Naruto episode in jetix; the part where Itachi and Kisame fought Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma. Then it hit me: what about Kakaita/Itakaka?! Another crazy pairing has been added to my list! It seemed totally cute, now that I think about it.

Anyway, this takes place during the chunin exams, after Sasuke got that mark and before he met Itachi again. Itachi and Kisame come to Konoha sooner than they should. :) Enjoy!

Warnings: Yaoi, torture, AU and some spoilers. Possible (but not likely) sexual content.

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, aswell as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 2 – Nothing is for naught**

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Itachi was staring into the fire silently, while Kisame was just cleaning his Samehada from the dried bits of blood and skin. It was a cold night, but the coats they wore, made them immune to the coldness. The wind gently blew, making a few leaves fall from the trees and scatter across the ground.

Itachi flicked his eyes briefly on to the stars above, before he found them on the surroundings to see if someone was there, even though he knew that there wasn't.

"Oi Itachi, a gold piece for your thoughts?" Kisame smirked. Itachi didn't answer; his thoughts were none of his partner's business.

Instead, he found his eyes locking on to the fire again. He liked fire, but he also liked water. They were both calm, but in a certain situation they were highly dangerous; just like he was. He almost let a smile on to his face; almost!

At that moment Itachi tensed up when he understood, that the jounin they had captured, was waking up. He turned his eyes on to the man that was laying on the ground near the fire.

The silver-haired jounin moaned from pain as he flicked his eyes open just enough to see that he was no where near a friendly territory. His throat felt dry and he could hardly move a muscle. What the hell had happened?!

"Looks like he woke up." Kisame grinned. "You alright, copy-nin?"

It took Kakashi a full five minutes to truly recognize the voice and when he did, everything came back again. The two Akatsuki members, the fight, the torture... and he'd been captured!

His mind panicked only slightly as he started to think of a way to get out of this situation. He internally winced, when his head started to throb painfully. Okay, thinking was out of the question. And he could barely move... This was bad...

He turned his head only slightly, feeling every single muscle in his body protest, but he kept moving. He let his eyes rest on the surroundings, but he was soon captured by the flicker of flames. He stared at the fire for a few minutes, before he willed his eyes to look at something else.

His eyes landed on Itachi. He stared, the other stared back. Kakashi's mind was drawing a blank. But only after a few minutes did he recognize the figure, even though he'd been staring at him straight in the eye.

He moved, trying to get himself into a more better position, so he could escape them. If he didn't, they'd kill him and he was in no position to fight them. Besides, he had to warn everyone in Konoha.

A silent hiss escaped his lips as he got himself up against a tree.

"What are you doing?" Kisame mockingly grinned. Kakashi didn't answer and he bit his lower lip in pain.

Itachi stared at the other man, his eyes showing the smallest bit of curiosity. He frowned; the man wasn't that stupid to try and... is he?!

Suddenly Kakashi forced on a smile; which looked like an actual one, because he was wearing a mask. "Could I get some water?"

Kisame stopped cleaning his sword and stared at the other man, before he locked eyes with Itachi. Silence only answered him and he grudgingly stood up and left to find some water.

Itachi stared at the man, wondering what it was that he was doing. Kakashi just kept smiling. "Ne, what are planning on doing with me? Or is my future classified?"

"...We will bring you to our lair and possibly extract any information useful to us."

"Too bad then, because I don't hold a lot of secrets."

"..."

Kakashi shifted a bit more in his position. "Ne, do you think you could get me some food?" _Old trick, but he can't deny me food_.

Itachi suspiciously stared at the other, who quite 'innocently' stared back. He stood up; either way, Kakashi was going with them to the lair. He took off, but not before he carefully slipped a Kage Bunshin in the nearby trees. He let a small smirk form on his lips as he went to search for something to eat.

As soon as Itachi was gone, Kakashi started to struggle to get up. It was painful and quite exhausting, but he finally got to his feet. He made a Kage Bunshin out of his pathetically low chakra, and took off into the forest.

The Itachi clone jumped out of the bush to follow, but the Kakashi clone got in the way. "Now, now, let my other half get a bit farther than this." He smiled, even though he looked tired. The other's eyes narrowed.

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Kakashi walked as fast as he could, which wasn't really fast in his condition. He knew this forest and he also knew that he wasn't far from another village. He just needed to get there.

He gasped as he felt his chest tighten and he couldn't breathe anymore. He stopped for a moment and breathed in big amounts of air, but only managed to get a little amount of it in his lungs. It burned... and for a few minutes, he simply stopped thinking, because of the pain.

He sighed; finally it stopped and he started to lightly jog again. If he didn't get a doctor soon, he'll... He shook his head, making more efforts to run even faster.

The forest was thick and it felt like he had been running forever, even though in reality, it was probably only five minutes.

Will he be able to reach the village in time, he thought. His eyes felt heavy and he wanted nothing than to sleep. Why had he accepted that mission anyway?! And without another jounin!? He sighed and stared right ahead.

He could almost see the village already. Yes, there it was. He smiled genuinely as he ran the way. But he froze when he felt something... something... that had happened to his Kage Bunshin. He started to run even faster as he realized that his Kage Bunshin had been defeated. It wont take long now, until he... but maybe he can manage.

Kakashi practically tripped as he tried to run even faster. No pain would be important if a life was on the line. You'd do anything to keep on living, no matter how much it hurt.

He pushed down the urge to throw up and kept on running. He was going to feel this tomorrow; he thought with a bitter smile.

The village was nearing and he could already see a bit of the village's houses. He gritted his teeth as his legs promised to give out under him, but he willed himself to run more. He was running on pure will now.

"Oy, who's there?" Someone shouted and Kakashi smiled, _Finally..._; before he fell on the ground unconscious. He couldn't help it, he was exhausted.

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"...Well, I don't know how... he just came from the trees... the injuries are... yes..."

Kakashi heard a bit of the conversation and he relaxed when he understood that he was no where near the two Akatsuki members. He opened his eyes and stared at his surroundings. The walls were white._ A hospital eh_...

"Hey, he's awake, doctor." A nurse said and two pairs of feet ran to his bedside.

"Kakashi-san, how are you feeling?" The doctor asked. "You've been out for only ten minutes. You should get more rest."

_Ten minutes,_ Kakashi thought, horrified, _At least it wasn't more.._. He started to struggle to sit up. "I have to... warn everyone..."

"No, Kakashi-san, you need to have your rest. Your mind is exhausted beyond the part where you should just fall asleep on the spot. I believe the only reason why you even woke up right now, is because it was pure by will. I understand that you must have some kind of a mission to accomplish, but you need to rest for now."

"NO!" Kakashi yelled and stood up. "I need... Do you have a messenger bird around here?" He asked. "Maybe then I'll stay, but first I need to write a letter to my village."

The nurse nodded quietly and they both ran out, leaving Kakashi there alone. It unnerved him, because he thought that in every second that went past, Itachi would appear. From the window, out of the closet, behind the door, under his bed... the possibilities were endless.

He willed himself to relax; this was ridiculous, he was getting paranoid.

It took about five minutes, but the nurse came back alone, with a piece of paper, a pencil and a messenger bird. Kakashi wrote the message quickly, before he let the bird take it. He opened a nearby window and let it flew out.

_Yes..._ Kakashi thought, as he relaxed and plunged into his hospital bed. Maybe... before they come... maybe he can get... some sleep...

He thought through it once again and sat up. No, he was not going to go and give those bastards any information. He could let himself be taken away and still not talk about it, but he guessed that the Akatsuki must have some sort of jutsu that could make him talk, so he'd better not risk it.

"Kakashi-san, you need to lie down. You'll hurt yourself even further." The nurse pleaded the copy-nin. The other only smiled, "I'm sorry nurse, but I have to go. See ya later." And with that... he was gone.

As soon as he was outside, his smile vanished though. The doctor wasn't kidding when he said that his mind was tired. And since his mind was tired, then it wanted to automatically shut down. The only thing holding it from doing it, was Kakashi himself. He just couldn't relax when he knew that even now, he might be watched and soon be taken away again.

He sighed and closed his eyes, rubbing the back of his head. He felt like he hadn't slept for weeks on end. He felt a pain starting in his chest again, but this time it didn't just burst out, it was simply growing; letting him -slowly -dig his own grave.

He clutched his chest in pain again. Why was he feeling pain like this? Itachi hadn't done anything to him, had he? ...Then he remembered something; the spot that was hurting most, was the part where Itachi had driven the most swords into, in his tsukiyomi that is.

He slowly started to walk away from the spot, his vision blurring from time to time. He tried telling himself over and over again that the pain was only in his mind, but it barely helped at all. He knew that the pain was in his mind, but it still hurt. And the more it hurt, the more tired he felt.

Before long, he was in the forest again. He'd been in this forest a lot of times, he knew without thinking how to get to Konoha, although it will probably take him about two days in his condition. _Well, better start walking then,_ He smiled.

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"How could you have let him get away?!" Kisame asked, incredulously, the bottle full of water in his hand.

"...I let him have a bit more freedom, before we capture him and wont let him ever feel it again. And I also wanted to see how far he was willing to go to get out and if he can still think properly in his condition... In his condition, it will take about two days to get to Konoha and he's already on the move."

Kisame raised an eyebrow, a bit freaked out hearing that long speech come in a monotone tone, never once changing. Sure, he was a bit used to Itachi talking like this, but it still freaked him out to no end. "Umm, okay... how do you know for sure that he's on the move?"

"... Because I can see him..."

Kisame blinked and then craned his head to stare at the same direction Itachi was. And sure enough, the copy-nin was walking there, right there in the woods. A feral grin appeared on Kisame's face. "Then..., should we capture him?"

Itachi was silent, staring at the other man. "...No not yet, let him feel the freedom one last time and then we'll take him away."

Kisame smirked. "You're a sick bastard, you know that? Playing with people's minds..." He shook his head and tsk'ed

Itachi silently watched the copy-nin, ignoring his partner's remark.

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Kakashi sighed, when he felt the cool night air on his face. The sun was long gone, gone before he had even left the campsite. He felt even more tired than before. He should be asleep, he knew that, but he just couldn't shake off the feeling that someone was watching him. He wished it was just in his imagination and that maybe the two Akatsuki members won't find him.

_Yeah right...,_ He scoffed. They were probably the ones stalking him, letting him be free for the last time, before grabbing the freedom away with brute force.

He sighed; was it just him or was he getting depressed by the fact that he may never see his beloved village and it's people again? Of course he was sad; who wouldn't be (people who left the village of their own accord, don't count).

He stopped walking, feeling too tired to even think anymore. He wasn't all that surprised when the two Akatsuki members he dreaded, appeared right in front of him. He was so tired...

His eyes started to feel painful and he couldn't do anything before his eyes closed and he fell on to the ground into a dreamless, although much needed sleep.

Itachi walked to the jounin and picked him up. Saying nothing, he started to silently jump back to where they had been before. He didn't know what it was like to experience the tsukiyomi, but it seemed devastating. The Konoha nin seemed weak and tired. Too weak and tired. Like he'd been fighting non-stop for a week or so.

Another hour went by and the two were back at their campsite, acting as though nothing had happened. Itachi put the body on the ground silently.

"I guess we better get some rest too, eh Itachi? Tomorrow we have to bring the Konoha nin to our base and it's a long journey." Kisame smirked. Itachi stayed silent, staring at the fire that was still there, before he got up and silently walked over to the nearest tree, slumped down on it and closed his eyes.

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Kakashi opened his eyes silently, feeling really weak. And furthermore, he felt like he was tangling from something... Someone was holding him from the back of his clothes. His eyes roamed the place, but he didn't get any smarter; it was pitch black.

Itachi felt when Kakashi woke up; the jounin's heartbeat had picked up it's speed, even if by a little. He stayed silent, not alerting the Leader and just waited for him to give an order. He tightened his grip on the other's clothes though, just to give the man a warning to not move, or else...

"..." Leader was silent for a moment as he stared at the silver-haired jounin. "... Konoha nin's will come looking for him..."

Kakashi tried to identify the voice, but he had no luck.

"I searched through his files; he has a mission that will take him at least a month. It will give us some time." Itachi answered without delay, his eyes never wavering from where he was looking at; the Leader.

"Does anyone know he was captured?" Leader asked, his eyes suddenly looking more vicious. Itachi stayed silent for a moment and then said, "No, no one knows of his presence here, excluding us."

Leader closed his eyes in thought. "Very well..." He opened his eyes to stare at the limp jounin in Itachi's grip. "Do you know how much of use he could be to us?" It wasn't a statement as one would guess, it was a blunt question.

Itachi closed his eyes. "... He knows quite a lot about the village. The information could be useful to us..."

Kakashi stayed limp, listening to every word. He knew that Itachi knew he was awake, from the way the grip had tightened for a moment on his clothes; it was a warning grip telling him to not move. And Kakashi gladly obliged; he wasn't in any form to fight the Akatsuki leader, plus there was Itachi and the other members of Akatsuki too. Nine members against an already beaten and battered up jounin, wasn't exactly good odds.

"...Then I'll leave him to you, Itachi. Extract any information useful to us. You may use any method you like, just don't kill him. Dismissed!"

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A/N: Umm, it took a lot of time sry! I don't have much time, so much has happened. And I am truly sorry for this crappy chapter TT.TT I think I wanna shrivel up in a pond of tar after this... No, after I'll write my first lemon, I'll probably wanna do that. But for now, I'll accept flames and then I'll brn myself with them.

And anyway, I got to watching One Piece. If any of ya guys want me to write a fic of OP too, then tell me. And also, the 'Could it happen?' story... I'm sorry you guys, after the last chappie, I didn't get many reviews and I instead began to focus on this new story, because it's my main OTP in Naruto at the moment.

And the 'Just a normal day' or wutever it was. I dun know when I'll get around to it, but anyway, I'll prolly focus on this story more :D Luv ya guys... even though you probably don't love me after this fic D:

And pleasu, vote in my poll people :D


	3. Burning

A/N: YAY!! THANK YOU ALL FOR THE LOVELY REVIEWS! Especially LovelyMystery and pangasius. You guys made me so happeh, so here's the crappy chapter three. :)

P.S. I'm translating this story for my friends so they can read it too. Hope they'll like it.

P.S.S. The above has nothing to do with anything, jus' felt like saying that.

P.S.S.S. You guys will probably think of some dirty thoughts as this goes on, but rest assured, there wont happen anything lemony... yet :D

Warnings: Yaoi, torture, AU and some spoilers. Possible (but not likely) sexual content.

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 3 - Burning**

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Itachi silently dragged the beaten and tired jounin down the halls, occasionally flicking his eyes to the man in his grip. Kakashi stayed silent and stared at the walls with dull eyes, letting himself be dragged away by his clothes. He felt so tired, yet he couldn't sleep anymore. Not now that he knew of what was going to happen to him. It wasn't that he was afraid, no, but his body and mind wont take much of that torture. His mind will probably die from over-exhaustion.

"I'm guessing that you wont give us information willingly..." Itachi muttered as he turned on a corner. Kakashi tensed only slightly, before he remembered that Itachi was still there. He didn't answer; of course he wasn't going to give those guys information willingly. He was going to wait until his village got his message and then rescue him. He couldn't let himself be broken. The village was far more important than his own life.

"...I'd hate to use force though..."

Kakashi was puzzled by that statement; he didn't want to use force?! Didn't every bad guy like to torture their enemy? What was with this Uchiha.

Kakashi strained his neck to stare at the Uchiha's face, but was disappointed to see emotionless red eyes look back. It unnerved Kakashi; that emotionless stare, but he didn't say anything. This Uchiha... what was he planning?

"What will you do?" The answer was obvious, but Kakashi still wanted to hear it.

Itachi stopped briefly, almost looking like he was lost in thoughts, before he started walking again. "I will get the needed information from you. Whether you cooperate or not, I will get it."

Kakashi let his head hang limp again and he closed his eyes in exhaustion, the conversation replaying in his head over and over again.

"_I'm guessing that you wont give us information willingly... I'd hate to use force though..."_

"_What will you do?"_

"_I will get the needed information from you. Wether you cooperate or not, I will get it."_

Kakashi came back to reality as he heard a cell's door open. The unmistakable iron clashing against iron made him aware that he was still held captive and he was going to be here for at least a few weeks if not more; considering when his village would get his letter... and when they'd figure out where he was.

Itachi walked into the cage and softly let go of Kakashi, letting the other fall to the ground with a soft thud. Kakashi carefully sat up and turned to see Itachi closing the cell's door. Itachi looked up after he locked the cell. "I will come from time to time... be prepared to give me answers." With that he turned and walked away.

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How much has it been already? A day? A week? Maybe only an hour? Kakashi didn't know; it was dark and there wasn't any windows. Why do baddies always have to live in some sort of a dark place anyway, Kakashi thought, bored. Couldn't they live out in the open, or did bad guys disintegrate when under sunlight?

He closed his eyes for the umpteenth time, feeling rather exhausted. How had he managed to run when he was captured, he didn't know. A few moments went by like this and then he remembered something. He quickly stood up; how had he forgotten to look a way out of this place?! Kakashi mentally hit himself for that, but what's done is done.

He went to the bars and stared at them intently. The bars seemed solid, but a nice kick should do it to get out. Kakashi grinned and took a stance. Seconds later his foot connected to the bars and a soft 'thunk' came out as he touched it. A few moments later Kakashi felt himself become very weak and he collapsed on the ground, glaring at the bars. They hadn't even moved from the spot, even though Kakashi's tai-jutsu was more than enough to damage iron to the point of breaking.

_Damn... too weak..._, he thought, his vision becoming slightly blurred. He cursed as he understood that he didn't have enough power in that kick. His mind and body were exhausted and even more so after that kick.

"Have you figured it out yet?..."

Kakashi's eyes widened and he quite quickly turned to stare at the entrance, but he regretted it soon as his vision blackened and he couldn't breathe for a few moments. When he saw again, he stared at the man in front of him; Itachi. It took another moment for him to register the words that Itachi had just said and he scowled.

"... These bars weaken the body, if you haven't figured it out yet. Anyone, who will touch it, will immediately be weakened to the point of almost falling unconscious. I'm surprised you didn't..." He took a few steps forward.

Kakashi glared at the other with the one eye that was still visible. Wait, how had his other eye been covered again if he hadn't done it himself? Maybe Itachi had... but when did he... and why...?

Unfortunately for him, while he'd been having a mental discussion with himself, Itachi had come closer. He took a seat next to Kakashi on the bed.

_Wait!_ Kakashi thought, confused. When did the bed appear here? Had it been here before? Why hadn't he acknowledged it? Was it genjutsu?

Itachi lifted Kakashi's chin up with one finger as he stared at the other man in the eye. Kakashi stared back, feeling more confused than ever when he was staring into those red, emotionless eyes. "Now... will you give me the information I need?... Or will I have to take it by force?"

Kakashi didn't move, didn't speak, almost even stopped breathing. He was partly torn; give information to the enemy willingly or endure the torture that was sure to come. And what was the torture going to be like? Is it going to be the tsukiyomi again...

Itachi smirked. "You're right. What better way to torture someone, than with the tsukiyomi...?"

And in a blink of an eye, Kakashi was in the shadows of his own mind. Nothing was around, just blackness. He turned and searched but didn't find anything. He noted that in his own mind, he could think better and even move better. He sighed in relief, before he remembered who he was going up against.

As soon as the thought ended, he was surrounded by fire.

_Fire?..._ Kakashi thought, having terrible thoughts on how this would probably go on. The fire, at first, only licked his sides and didn't burn him much, but the heat was already enough for Kakashi, as he started to feel quite light-headed and hot. He coughed a bit, feeling fire creep up on his legs and burn him. He barely registered that his clothes didn't burn off.

It burned and it hurt. It wasn't just fire licking him anymore, it was surrounding him, burning him from all sides, making his skin even more sensitive so that he felt every next burn even more sharply than the last one.

He opened an eye to see Itachi standing there, in the fire, staring at him. "This will go on for another three days... will you endure it?"

Kakashi growled out as he felt his skin start to melt in the hot fire. He lifted his hand and saw bones coming out, his skin melting around them. He gasped as a fireball came straight at him. The next thing he knew was that the fireball passed right through him, leaving a burnt hole in his stomach. He gasped and fell to his knees, feeling weak and tired, but he just didn't, couldn't, fall asleep, no matter how much he tried to lose consciousness.

"You can't lose consciousness in your own mind, Kakashi-san..."

Kakashi knew that the Uchiha was right, but it didn't make him feel better. In fact, feeling this burning pain over and over again, he couldn't do anything... and yet... he still told himself that the pain was only in his head.

"Pain is pain, call it what you will, but it still leaves a mark in your mind."

Kakashi's eyes widened as he saw a huge fire wave come and drown him under it's sea of fire. Kakashi finally let out a scream as he felt the fire suffocating him from all sides, pushing down on him, slowly letting him dig his own grave, until he'd finally break. It cut through him and around him, not letting him even breathe as all he saw was red.

His mind had long ago left him and now he was just screaming with each dry, cutting flame that burned him. He could barely breathe under the sea of fire, let alone move. His skin was dry, melting and the parts that were now bones, hurt the most, because the fire still kept burning them, slowly turning them to ash.

"... There are still 71 hours 59 minutes and 59 seconds to go..." Itachi murmured.

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Kakashi gasped as he was finally let out of that torture chamber called 'his own mind'. The floor under him felt extra cold now, with his senses heightened, because of the fire. His mind didn't even register that there wasn't a bed in the room anymore, too tired to even breathe properly.

Itachi stared at the other man, feeling a bit exhausted himself, but he shook it off, telling himself that he should rest a bit and then he'll be okay again. The other man on the other hand... he seemed to be in a worse situation than before. He waited until Kakashi got his breathing (mostly) under control and then asked, "Will you give me information or do you need a few more torturing sessions?"

Kakashi was shivering badly and he didn't even know why. At first it was too cold, but a burning sensation accompanied it, making his body feel confused. Too hot and yet... too cold. His body didn't know which one it should stay to.

He had heard the question, yeah, but it didn't mean that he could answer him. His teeth were chattering and he couldn't move a single muscle, because he was shaking all over. He felt like throwing up... throwing up fire.

Like hell would he give the man any information. He had gone through so much trouble to write a letter to his village. What good would it do if he told anything to his enemies.

Itachi blinked, "Your letter?..." He murmured as he took out a scroll of paper and let it fall in front of the other man.

Kakashi's eyes widened and he choked on his own breath. "...Nghh... Ahh... the... letter...?" He was horrified; the village didn't know anything about him and his last chance of escaping was now sitting right in front of him.

"...A month of torturing will be enough for you..." Itachi sighed and started to walk away. He locked the iron bars behind him and threw one last glance at the other shinobi, before he walked away from the spot, leaving the shivering man alone.

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"Ne, ne, Itachi. Tell me, did he give any information to you or did you just kill him right away, un?" Deidara grinned, leaning against the wall. The other man closed his eyes in annoyance. "...Go complete your orders."

Deidara scowled. "Yeah, well... why don't you do it?" Deidara regretted asking that as an emotionless glare settled on him. "...Un..." Deidara sighed in defeat, while muttering, "...You bastard... manipulating people's minds... un..."

The blond muttered curses as he walked down the hall to the jounin's cell, holding a tray of food. It wasn't like he had to do it... well, actually, he did, but doing this is better than dying by the hands of one of the Uchiha. Still... he didn't like to baby-feed another man. He hoped the jounin was at least a bit fun to play around with.

He stopped at the copy-nin's cell and looked in. "Oi, someone in there? You're not dead are ya, un?" There was no answer and he opened the cell, walking in. At first, it was too dark to see, even for him, but then he walked over to the silver-haired jounin as he started to see more clearly.

"Man... Itachi sure did a number on you..." Deidara said, showing the least bit of sympathy towards the other man. Kakashi was on the ground, shaking involuntarily, eyes wide open. He looked absolutely pathetic in that state. Luckily, it was in human nature to show sympathy to others. Deidara sat down on the floor next to the other. "Would you give information to me if I asked?"

Kakashi turned his eyes on to the blonde man in front of him, feeling confused. Shouldn't Itachi be here?

Deidara must've seen the confusion in his eyes because he grinned. "Name's Deidara... un... You must be wondering why Itachi isn't here. Well, he made sure that I'll be the one to feed you." Deidara grimaced as he remembered the emotionless glares he'd gotten from Itachi, until he finally agreed.

Kakashi looked up in confusion; the other man was wearing an Akatsuki cloak, but he didn't act the least bit evil. Was he a new member?

"Un, I guess I should start feeding you then..." Deidara grinned as he lifted his fingers to slowly pull down the other's mask, when a hand stopped him. Kakashi glared, "... Can... Aaah... eat... by myself... guh..."

Deidara scoffed, "Just seconds ago you were shivering like a newborn infant and now you're practically telling me to 'fuck off'. How very nice of you. I show you sympathy and this is the thanks I get for working over time. I am so gonna demand my payment to be bigger this week... And don't you tell me that you can eat yourself! If I don't make sure you eat healthily, then Itachi is going to kill me... multiple times..." The blond grumbled something else, but Kakashi was too weak to strain his ears and listen fully. That blond sure talked a lot...

The blond once again started to pull the mask off and this time, Kakashi didn't stop him. He was too tired and he partly even forgot that someone was there. His mind was so messed up right now...

"Aww, you've got a really kawaii face. I dun know why you hide it..." Deidara smirked and helped the man lean on to a wall. He dragged his fingers down the other's cheek and a bit of the scar the disappeared under his hitai-ate. "...Hmm... Your face is pretty, I don't know why Itachi didn't want to feed you himself. But now I'm glad he trusted that job to me..."

Had Kakashi been conscious enough, he'd been scowling. But he wasn't, he was half unconscious and he was too tired to listen to the words.

Deidara took a bowl of rice and started to feed the other man, sometimes having to wake the other up enough for him to swallow and not choke on the food. It was quite silent as this went on, until Deidara got tired and started to have random chitchat, talking while Kakashi either listened to him or not. Several times Kakashi had to croak out a 'What?', because his mind simply hadn't gotten it. He still wanted to listen though, because any information from the Akatsuki members could be useful.

Deidara grinned. "Wow, Itachi sure overused his Sharingan this time. You can barely understand my words, un... Anyway, don't tell him this, but I personally don't like him. He's so stoic and acts like he's the center of the world, un... Damn little bastard..."

Deidara thought for a bit and then said, "And Sasori's not that great either. Pfft, thinks that those puppets are true art... And Hidan with his rituals, man he annoys me with them. Sometimes we can hear him screaming for hours about how great the pain is and such... he's a freak. Zetsu's kinda okay, but his split personalities get me confused. Kisame's a fish, enough said, " Deidara smirked. "Kakuzu is only after money... and Konan's the only girl, guess it must be hard for her."

Kakashi almost blacked out again, had Deidara not just suddenly pushed a loaf of bread into his mouth, bringing him back to his senses. "Mnn... no..." He tried to tell the other that he didn't want to eat anymore.

Deidara sighed, "Un, you have to eat. If I don't make sure you eat this, then I think you know what the Uchiha-who-has-a-stick-in-his-you-know-what will do." When he saw that the other man almost gagged on the bread, then he pulled back. "Fine... un... but now I have to leave. Itachi said that I shouldn't be here for any other reason than feeding you. Though I did want to talk to you a bit more." He pouted, and for a moment Kakashi almost saw Naruto in that man, but it vanished quickly.

The man got up and stared at the bowl in his hand. The copy-nin had barely eaten half of it and he scowled, muttering something inaudible. He stared at the jounin and then crouched down to pull the other's mask back up. "Itachi didn't know what he was missing, "Deidara grinned.

He got up and walked back out with the tray. He locked the cell and left.

Kakashi stared multiple hours at the iron bars, before something clicked in his mind. _What the... was someone here?..._

_..._

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_I hate him for doing this to me... I could barely move before and now I can't really move at all... _

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_...I feel kinda full... but when did I eat?..._

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_What was I thinking about again?_

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_Oh yeah... How I hate Itachi..._


	4. Cold

A/N: This is chapter four... I think. Anyway, it's good to see ya guys again. I was sick for a while (food poisoning) and I wuz writing another story for a looong time :D I hope you guys had a great time. This chapter will focus on a lot of things, mainly on Itachi's sufferings this time, because we all know that we fangirls like to see tortured bishounen ;P Itachi's kinda feeling a bit weak and his eyesight is going down D: Damn that eyesight, if only I could just write around it and say that he can't lose his eyesight, but no... I just have to be like those people who want to follow the storyline as much as they could. *sigh* And it has spoilers about the recent chappies about the Uchiha inside. Anyway, you guys go visit my poll and vote, because it'll get harder for me to write other stories otherwise.

Listening to: Everybody's Fool by Evanescence (FTW people, that song rocks so hard!)

Warnings: Mental torturing, AU, spoilers for the lates chapters of Naruto. Possible, but not likely, sexual content.

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 4 - Cold**

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"Has he told you anything yet?"

"No."

"How long, before he does?"

"...Two weeks, if his spirit is that strong. Not more though, because his body can't handle the strain."

"...Itachi, I ordered you to get information from him, not kill him. Though, I suppose we probably wont have any choice later."

"I will keep him alive enough..."

A nod and a sigh. "Very well, you may proceed. But refrain from using more force than needed. I heard that he can barely talk right now. You could keep letting him sway on that line though; he's sure to break sooner... Dismissed!"

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Itachi scowled as he closed the door behind him and walked away silently. His silence was soon interrupted when Deidara came up to Itachi with a grin. "Itachi-kun." Itachi felt, for some reason, more annoyed than he had just a second ago.

"Can I go and feed Kakashi again? After all, everyone needs food to function properly... and to give one some information." He was pushing it, but Itachi didn't feel like feeding the Konoha nin himself right now. He felt absolutely tired, plus his eyesight had worsened more after that last torture. "Yes... go... If Leader needs me, you know where to look." And he said specifically Leader, because anyone else to interrupt him with anything else was bound to walk out of his room castrated and mentally wounded.

Deidara all but jumped of joy and leaped to the kitchen to make some food for the copy-nin; which left Itachi a bit surprised. What made the blonde want to be with the silver-haired jounin so much?

Well, it didn't matter. Itachi began his trip through the many halls to his room. The halls were dimly lit and had anybody else, except for an Akatsuki member, been walking through here, then they would've been lost here forever. It was like a maze, which annoyed them all, but also proved to be very useful with the past prisoners (aka, the tailed beast's hosts).

They had all been trapped in this maze, never finding a way out, until someone of the Akatsuki finally came a few weeks later when the tailed beast's host was weak from the lack of food. Then they literally dragged the half-dead human back to where he/she had escaped from.

Yeah, those halls were really dangerous. Many doors there, if there even were any, lead to a trap. So an Akatsuki had to keep his eyes open, otherwise they could open the wrong door and never come out of it again. None knew the contents of the doors, but they didn't actually want to find out either. Some things were just better left like that.

As Itachi walked into his own personal room, he suddenly felt more tired than he had in weeks. He walked to his bed and laid down on it, thinking it was best if he rested for a while before his next torture. He grimaced at the thought.

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"Hey, Kakashi-san! How are we feeling today?!" Deidara grinned, walking into the cell. He closed it behind him and walked to the tired jounin near the wall. The blonde grinned even wider at the jounin, who seemed to not even notice his presence.

He placed the tray on the floor and crouched down in front of Kakashi to look at him. "Man... you don't seem to be in a better shape than the last time I came." He reached up his hand to slowly pull off the other's mask. "In fact, you seem in an even worse situation." He grinned as he finally took the mask off to see Kakashi's face again. "This has GOT to be the most exciting thing I've done in a while, un, " He cupped the jounin's chin carefully. "Na, Kakashi, your students are in the middle of the chunin exams, right? Why go on a mission?"

It seemed like Kakashi didn't even fully understand WHO he was talking to as he replied automatically to the question. "The village... it needed more money..." Deidara pondered this for a while. "Hmm, that seems about right, un. Since I'm sure that no one would want to miss the exams, then no one wanted to go on a mission, right? And you were the only one who agreed to go." Deidara threw his hands behind his head and moaned in annoyance. "This bites, un. We're gonna have to let you go in a month... or so I heard, un. But it's so fun to talk to someone who's not a complete monster here."

He sighed and took the bowl into his hand, starting to feed Kakashi. "Un, I heard that the other Uchiha is in your team... Does he act like an ass like Itachi too?" Kakashi's eyes were still unfocused as nodded slowly, still not understanding who he was talking to.

Deidara grinned. "Is it just those two or did all of the Uchihas act like they were the kings and queens? It's a good thing Sasuke hasn't gone berserk, like Itachi did, and killed off a few hundred lives, un. Though I bet he does make a lot of people miserable if he's somewhat like Itachi." Kakashi nodded slowly and tiredly, eyes closing.

"Oi, don't go to sleep yet. You have to chew your food, otherwise you'll choke." He shook the jounin. The other slowly opened his tired eyes, not really focusing on anything. "That's better, un."

He gave the jounin some water. "Hmm... I heard that you are going to be killed when we get our information." Kakashi didn't seem to hear, but Deidara didn't really care. He shook his head and smirked suddenly. "Hey, ya wanna see a trick?" When Kakashi didn't answer, he grinned and put his hand into his clay bag. He took out a piece of clay and made a small bird out of it.

The bird flew into the air, circling them. Deidara briefly stared at Kakashi, seeing that he had the other's attention, before he let the bird explode. He turned to the jounin. "Pretty cool, huh? Sasori thinks that lifeless puppets are art, but he's wrong. THIS is art! Though I guess the others don't really see it. You think it's art, don't you?"

The jounin didn't answer, eyes closing in exhaustion. Deidara grinned and put the other's mask back on, before looking at the bowl. Well, at least he had eaten more today than that other day. "Sooo... which time should I come back? Itachi's gonna come and give you a torture session again... but I guess it doesn't really matter what time I come, righ---"

"...Deidara..."

Deidara froze in mid sentence, slowly turning his head around, face pale. "A-ah, Itachi-kun..."

"...You were supposed to feed him, not make conversation with him. "

Deidara smiled sheepishly as he stood up, scratching the back of his head. "W-well, that's not really my fault to begin with..." He took a look at the jounin, before turning back to face Itachi again. "Okay... so maybe it was my fault... but... but he's the only one here who's normal around here and it's good to talk to somebody like that, y'know..."

"Your assignment was to feed him, not talk to him and show your abilities to the enemy." Deidara blinked. "How did you...?" Itachi glared at the blonde. "Anyone can hear your art, when it's made."

"Oh... so that's it... okay." He quickly took the tray of food and scurried away.

Itachi sighed softly once Deidara was gone. He turned to the tired jounin and just stared at him for a moment. The other seemed in a bad situation, it wouldn't be long before he would just die.

Itachi walked towards the jounin and took a hold of the other's chin. He already activated the Sharingan, knowing that the other wont be able to give him an answer in that state. Once they both were inside the black room of Kakashi's mind, Itachi asked, "Kakashi-san, " Kakashi visibly flinched.

"Will you give me answers?"

When Kakashi just stared at the ground, not moving, not saying anything, Itachi sighed. Kakashi truly intended to die before giving them any information.

"...The village..."

Itachi's eyes opened slowly to stare at the other.

"...They wont give you Naruto."

The S-ranked ninja stared at the other with blank eyes, before letting a wave of water fill in the room. The copy-nin was thrown under the water and began to drown, never actually drowning. Soaking wet already, he tried to focus on his chakra, so he could walk on water. As expected, it didn't work and he was swept under the water by another wave.

'I... hate you...'

Itachi froze, eyes snapping open. He knew that they were Kakashi's thoughts and he had known that the other felt this way, but to hear those words come from someone of his village... the village he had tried to protect...

Itachi blinked to get rid of the thoughts and stopped the jutsu, leaving a drenched Kakashi on the ground, gasping for breath. He took a hold of the scruff of Kakashi's neck and glared at him. "Hating me alone wont get you far. You have to act." Why did he sound a lot like he was when he talked his little brother into getting revenge?

Kakashi stared into his red eyes. "I... can't help but hate you..."

Itachi threw the other away, continuing his torture. The water flew into the room fast but steadily. Kakashi glared at the other, who was standing on the water, staring at him as the copy-nin floated in the water.

Suddenly Kakashi felt really cold. Looking down he saw that the water had turned into ice. And before long, ice-bolts came and pierced through him. Kakashi made a choked sound of near pain and also felt that he was beginning to go numb. But the sight of red blood flowing out of his cuts and then freezing, was enough to make him panic.

The ice around him started to turn into water again and warm up, making him feel more pain when the numbness went away. He didn't like it.

And then it continued and it was the same again and again. With Kakashi frozen in a sea, ice-bolts piercing him, the ice turning into water again, drowning him a few times before leaving him gasping in pain on the ground. And sometimes his cuts even flared with fire, making the pain even more unbearable.

And it continued on like this for three days.

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Itachi stood up slowly, albeit a bit shakily, and stared at Kakashi's unconscious form. To tell the truth, he was a bit shaken from that torture. His body felt like it would collapse and his eyes were now in an even worse situation than before. It took all his strength and will to stand up properly and not look like he was about to fall unconscious on the spot. He would need to rest from that for a few days and it wasn't like Kakashi would get better anytime soon if he wouldn't get a doctor.

He stared at Kakashi's tired and worn out body, before turning around and walking out, locking the cell. As he walked down the deadly halls his thoughts began to wander, but not so much that he would forget where he had to turn. His thoughts wandered to the screams, the screams of all of those people he had killed before.

Almost all of them had pleaded for their and their family's lives, before he had brutally and ruthlessly killed them all. No, he wasn't thinking about the Uchiha clan, he didn't regret killing them and they hadn't pleaded for their lives either. That massacre had been a mission to protect the village and he didn't ever regret protecting the village.

But those people he had killed while under orders of the Leader (who was under orders from Madara), he hadn't liked them. He didn't like those people one bit. Because they pleaded for their lives and protected their loved ones and they made him weak. Made him not want to kill them, and yet... he got a strange kick out of it when he killed an especially skilled man's mind and body. Hmm, Madara must be rubbing off on him.

And Itachi wanted to hit something, to do anything to vent out his anger. Anger because Kakashi was the one to remind him of those killed people. He wouldn't vent out his anger on Kakashi, no, the jounin has had more than enough of torture already. But he wanted to fight someone and then brutally kill them, letting their blood soak his black cloak. Because he was angry and he felt weak. And if he was weak then Sasuke would have no problem with killing him off. But he needed to make it brutal for him.

He couldn't afford to be weak; there were too many things that he needed to be strong for.

He sighed as he turned a corner, almost missing it because of his eyesight. He felt tired; he needed rest. Walking up to his door he walked in and laid down on his bed, not bothering to do anything more than that. Closing his eyes, his thoughts wandered back to the silver-haired jounin. He... he hadn't screamed, but there had been agony in his eyes. Though he had screamed the last time he had tortured him, with fire.

'The copy-nin is... strong... and getting even stronger.' Were his thoughts before suddenly the world went black and he fell unconscious from exhaustion.

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"Itachi-kun, I apologize for interrupting you, but it would be best for you to rouse from your slumber."

Itachi opened his eyes, feeling a head ache begin to form. He was tired and still felt quite exhausted from the torture session he'd had.

He sat up quietly and looked up into chocolate colored eyes. He blinked. "Did Leader acquire my presence, Sasori-kun?" Sasori smiled. "No, but the others were concerned about you. You were out for two days."

Itachi snapped his eyes open and stared at the puppet-master. Sasori wasn't wearing his puppet, so that meant that he was probably fixing or cleaning it. But he was here, so that meant that someone (like Deidara) had annoyed him into coming here, because Sasori would almost never leave his puppets' side.

Sasori gave a small smile at the younger male. "They finally sent me to see if you were alright. I first knocked on your door, but you didn't answer, so, I apologize, I opened it. Though now I must take my leave, my puppets need taking care of." He turned and left the younger man inside the room alone.

Itachi stared at the ground for a while, his mind still not working properly due to being woken up so early. Then he got up and corrected his clothing. He didn't even want to know how bad he looked right now.

Walking out slowly he turned on a corner, his mind knowing where he was headed, but it remained a mystery to him as to WHY exactly was he going there. He just needed to... see if he hadn't killed Kakashi.

Not that he really cared for the other's death, but if he was dead, then he would yet again feel guilty over another Konoha nin's death. He didn't want that; killing Kakashi was the last thing he wanted.

The words from yesterday that came from Kakashi rung in his head clearly and he felt more down than before. Konoha... hated him... for killing the Uchiha clan, yes, they still hated him. He wouldn't be ever able to show his face there without the village sending the ANBU after him. Sure, he had agreed to the mission of taking everyone's lives and sacrificing his own sanity for it, but he still wasn't quite used to it. That he had no home to go to, no one to wait for him anywhere, no one to...

Itachi stopped his train of thought when he reached the cell. Staring at the door for a while, he finally opened it and walked in. In the darkness he finally saw the jounin's battered and tired body. The other was conscious, yes, but he didn't seem to be alive anymore. And hadn't his chest been moving slowly, hardly even, he would've thought that the other was dead.

The jounin couldn't move, couldn't speak, was hardly even breathing; and it made Itachi feel weak again. He had never tortured someone like this before. Torturing someone over and over with the tsukiyomi, it seemed bad; for them both.

He stared at him before sitting down next to the battered body, leaning on a wall. Looking at him, Itachi once again felt bad for the jounin. Making up his mind he went next to the unmoving body and took a hold of his chin, forcing the other to watch him in the eye. Knowing he was going to feel rather tired afterwards, he all but forced the tsukiyomi out again.

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	5. Knowing

A/N: Since the last chapter was so popular... I wrote this chapter right after I wrote another chappie for the Just a Normal day story. I love reading reviews, be them short or long (though longer ones make me xtra happy :D) So... ILU guys :)

Listening to: Rabbit run by Eminem (One Piece remix)

Warnings: Mental torturing, AU, spoilers for the latest chapters of Naruto. Possible, but not likely, sexual content.

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 5 - Knowing**

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Itachi stared at Kakashi before sitting down next to the battered body, leaning on a wall. Looking at him, Itachi once again felt bad for the jounin. Making up his mind he went next to the unmoving body and took a hold of his chin, forcing the other to watch him in the eye. Knowing he was going to feel rather tired afterwards, he all but forced the tsukiyomi out again.

In Kakashi's mind, Kakashi was more than alive and he quickly stood up to face the enemy. "What's this?" He demanded. "Coming to pay me an early visit?"

Itachi walked back a few steps and looked to the side. The scenery changed; it went from pitch black and crimson red to beautiful sceneries of forests and nature. A waterfall nearby, animals watching them from afar, fruits and berries all around.

Kakashi was very wary of this. "What is all this?" He asked.

Itachi turned to tiredly stare in his eyes and he sighed. "Relax..." Kakashi was puzzled at this and a million thoughts spread through his mind at once. "...Stop thinking and relax. It will do you some good."

Kakashi reluctantly felt that he could do that for now and he sat down on the ground, still tense. He leaned onto a tree, but didn't stop staring at the Akatsuki member.

Itachi closed his eyes and sat down, leaning against a tree. "It's because you were almost dead and to give us information, you need to think properly... You weren't thinking and you were barely alive."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "And whose fault is that, I wonder." He remarked sarcastically. Itachi stared at the ground; he had indeed gone a bit... overboard... with that last torture. He had only followed orders and yet... he hadn't expected that it would go like it had. He hadn't meant to get angry, because Kakashi reminded him of his previous victims. He hadn't meant to feel so devastated afterwards either.

Kakashi sighed and then looked around. "All this... will it work?"

Itachi closed his eyes. "I don't know. I have never used it in reverse."

Kakashi scoffed; this might not even make him feel better?! It might even make everything worse. The jounin sighed and looked around again. The scenery was beautiful, something he'd never seen before. But he knew that soon he will be bored with this. After all, three days of nothing to do and you can't even fall asleep... yeah, that sounded boring.

"Sooo..." Kakashi started. "Will you guys kill me once you've obtained the information."

"..."

Kakashi scowled. "You could at least tell me what you wanna do to me... since, well, there's not really any escape for me from this, is there?" He watched as the boy opened his eyes and stared at him.

"...Most likely..."

_Now that's just sad_, Kakashi thought, mind whirring with ideas how to not get himself killed. Itachi didn't comment on his thoughts and made himself more comfortable on the other side of the camp. He closed his eyes and it wasn't long, before he softly fell asleep; something that Kakashi couldn't do there.

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_...Damn,_ Itachi thought as he opened his eyes again. He just knew that this will make him a lot more tired. He already felt his body in Kakashi's own mind grow weak and that happened only when he was utterly and horrendously tired, which wasn't so very common to him. And he felt weak. Not mentally, but physically, for the first time in a very long time. And the weakness made him angry; and the angrier he got, the more tired he was. It was a never ending cycle.

Itachi's eyes dropped closed for a second before he glanced at Kakashi. He blinked; Kakashi wasn't there. It took only a moment before he located Kakashi in his mind-forest. He got up, swaying a bit.

"...Ahh..." Itachi closed his eyes in pain and gritted his teeth. He coughed out some blood, feeling a pain start swelling in his chest. _This isn't good,_ he thought, vision blurring. He leaned on a tree with his back up against it, hoping the pain would go away before Kakashi found his way back to him and saw him like this.

With the pain dulling a bit, he sighed in relief. He quickly transported himself to where Kakashi was, seeing the older man stare into the water of a river. Itachi leaned on a tree behind Kakashi; the sudden use of energy blurred his vision slightly. And a headache started to form; to which Itachi thought that it would be best if he ended this three-day nourishment for today. But he didn't.

"Y'know..."

Itachi opened his eyes just in time to see the older man turn around to face and smile at him.

"You forgot to let the night come. With just day for three days, it becomes really boring."

Itachi's eyes widened briefly and he nodded. "I apologize, Kakashi-san." How could he have forgot to let day become night?! The exhaustion must be really getting to him.

"So, is there anything to do here?" Kakashi asked as he turned to stare at the sky. Itachi glared at the older man. "Kakashi-san... You are not supposed to do anything here, but relax. Everything else is irrelevant."

"But I'll get bored." Kakashi said with a calm tone, just edging for Itachi to snap. Though the other didn't seem to be fazed by it and said. "Everything else is irrelevant. But you can wander around your own mind, if that gives you an activity to occupy yourself with..."

Kakashi sighed. "Well that's one thing that will take my mind off of boredom... but it will be still boring if I went alone." _Get information out of me, why don't you,_ Kakashi scowled,_ The only reason why you're not throwing a kunai in my throat is because you need to get info from me._

The only reason why he was even inviting Itachi on this journey was because so he could get some information from him... and so he wouldn't go insane with the lack of human company.

Itachi sighed; Kakashi-san didn't even bother to hide his own thoughts from him. Though he accepted the offer nonetheless.

As they both walked in the forest, they barely spoke a word. And it lasted like that until the sky began to darken. When the sun began to set, Kakashi spoke up, "So, what do you Akatsuki want from the tailed beasts anyway?" He was very blunt with the question and didn't hide his curiosity.

Itachi glanced at the jounin, before looking ahead of him again. "It's something I can't tell you, Kakashi-san."

Kakashi frowned. "Okay then... but tell me about those team mates you have." Kakashi smiled. "Like that Deidara... and Sasori."

Itachi glanced at Kakashi briefly. "How do you know about Sasori, Kakashi-san?" Kakashi blinked. "Umm, I don't really know... His name just popped into my head somehow... along with Hidan and the guy whose name started with Kaku... there were others too... like Kisame and Zetsu and... Tobi, was it? I don't know how I know about them."

Itachi decided to ignore that for now and sighed. "We have groups of two inside the organization..." And so he told Kakashi everything and at the same time, nothing at all. He said things that didn't really matter, which started to annoy Kakashi. And Itachi knew it, even so he went on.

By the time he had finished, Kakashi was barely listening anymore._ Man... could someone so creepy even make a guy this bored? ...Apparently yes. _Itachi let a small smirk fall on his face at the other's thoughts. The silver-haired jounin was... amusing.

"Okay, I know you just told that story on purpose. Were you trying to make me bored and annoyed?" Kakashi sighed out finally. "Because it worked, terribly... hate you." He muttered.

Itachi stiffened briefly, but said nothing.

"So how long has it been already? A hour? A day?" Kakashi asked, yawning.

"2 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes and 57 seconds."

Kakashi blinked. "That long? It never went by so fast when you tortured me." Itachi wanted to glare at the other man and truly start torturing him again, but refrained himself from doing so. "..."

"Well, anyway... it's gonna end soon and then you'll go back to torturing me. I'll prolly have a concussion and I wont probably even make it before this month ends, but no pressure eh?" He laughed.

At that, Itachi really did glare at the older jounin. "...Kakashi-san, do you not care what happens to you?" Kakashi opened his eyes to stare at the other. "Oh, I do. But there's not much I can do, when my body barely even sits properly straight. Besides, I'm not so suicidal that I would go against the Akatsuki with my body exhausted like this." He yawned.

Itachi reluctantly turned his gaze to the road again, thinking. He wanted to ask something, to hear the jounin's opinion on it. He almost did, but the fact was; he didn't. He asked something else instead. "Do you have a family, Kakashi-san?" Why did he ask that? Well, he would know if someone dear to him would grieve much when they killed Kakashi-san. But that wasn't the only reason; he was just curious about the silver-haired male.

"Why? You wanna kill them too?" Kakashi snorted. "But if you must know; no, I don't. I don't have any siblings. My father commited suicide when I was young---" Ah, yes, the White Fang... "---and my mother did so too, a few months after my father, just because she couldn't bear the pain of being alone. My mother is the reason why I wont get attached to someone easily, either. So... no, no luxury like a family."

Itachi looked away, making soft remarks about it in his head. Mostly he just asked no one in particular if Kakashi's mother really hated Kakashi. Because his mother would never have done that; he loved his sons too much to commit suicide.

"But what about you?"

Itachi blinked, "I don't have a family, Kakashi-san. You know that."

"No, that's not what I meant. Do you have a girlfriend? Or a boyfriend? Whichever you prefer." Kakashi grinned; which made Itachi wonder if Kakashi really didn't care that he was right now walking alongside with a killer.

"No, I don't..."

"Why not? There must be at least a handful of people who like bad guys. Why not get yourself someone?"

Itachi scowled. "I do not want anybody. People dear to you... slow you down..." Kakashi sighed and Itachi snapped his eyes back to the other. "You're still just a child, even though you've killed more people than some ANBU have in their lifetime." Itachi's eyes narrowed. "What?"

Kakashi stopped walking. "My, my... Okay, we had a mission..." Itachi, sensing that a longer story would come, leaned on a tree.

"I didn't actually see or hear any of what my students were talking back there, because I was too busy fighting with Zabuza and they were too far away fighting the other person. But after that all, one of them came to me and said what the other boy, the one they had been fighting, said..." Kakashi smiled. "Honestly, that other boy, who was only 12 years old, was more smarter than you. Because it's when you have someone dear to you, then you become truly strong. Those were his words."

Itachi was silent, wondering silently over those words. It's not that he didn't believe that the boy's words had some truth in them, but it was that he didn't want anyone near to him. Because if the one he loved would be killed, then it would all be for nothing. Love was... irrational..., irrelevant.

"Everyone has their own way of living. I chose my path long ago."

Kakashi scowled, _Cold bastard._

Itachi walked away from the tree and said, "If you have anything else to say, then say it now. This session will end soon."

Kakashi frowned. "No. You can end it a bit earlier if you wanted to."

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Indeed he did. After Kakashi had said those words, Itachi had been very relieved and ended it quickly. What he wasn't prepared for, though, was the explosion of exhaustion and the stress of reality that came over him. Kakashi was awake, watching him quietly, though it seemed that he still wasn't that well to truly understand what exactly was Itachi doing.

Itachi got to his feet silently, his legs almost giving up under him. And he felt sick; suddenly he felt really, really sick.

He silently made it out of the cell, locking it, before disappearing into his own room, where he went to his bed. He, surprisingly, fell unconscious before his head even hit the pillow.

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"Hokage-sama!"

The hokage looked up from his papers on the desk, watching as a young chuunin suddenly bursted in the front doors, gasping for breath as he did so.

"What is the matter?"

The chuunin labored his breathing and said. "The jounins who Kakashi was supposed to meet up with, to tell them about the mission and also so that they would know that he was okay... well, they said that Kakashi never contacted them. And hokage-sama, it's been about two weeks already! It shouldn't take so long for Kakashi; one of our best fighters to meet up with someone!"

The third's eyebrows knit together in thought and confusion. Indeed, Kakashi was one of the best and even for him it shouldn't take so long to just meet up with someone. The hokage nodded curtly. "We'll wait another few days; if he does not show up anywhere by then, we will send someone to look for him. Dismissed!"


	6. Healed

A/N: _**I REWROTE THIS!**_ Ok, so the last one was a bit off... can someone say crappy?! Anyway, I hated it as much as you did, so I rewrote this completely from scratch! ENJOY!

Listening to: Memories by Within Temptation

Warnings: Mental torturing, AU. Possible, but not likely, sexual content. Some spoilers about Itachi... so people who only watch the anime, get out nao!

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 6 –** **Healed**

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He didn't like this feeling. It was a feeling of weakness. It made him think back to the day when he killed the whole clan; and it made him angry. You're probably wondering now what was the feeling he was describing. Well, it was pain, if you wanted the simplest of explanations. It was pain of what he had done to the Konoha nin and it reminded him so much of how he'd betrayed the clan. How he'd killed them all (except for a few individuals).

As Itachi trudged along the halls in silence, he felt madness slowly consume him. Why? Why couldn't he just kill the ninja? A few reasons why; 1. He was not allowed to until the month has ended, 2. he just couldn't.

You'd think it was funny that the Uchiha couldn't kill someone, right? He himself didn't think so. Whenever he came close to just taking out the kunai and slitting the man's throat, he became unable to move. He felt frozen, just staring at the other man in silence as the other stared back. Then, the next thing he knew, he was walking in the halls, back to his room.

It made him feel like he was going to die soon; which might very well be true, because who knows when Sasuke attacks and he has to die by his hand. But Itachi thought that this wasn't the case.

At the moment he was waiting in front of the Konoha-nin's cell, looking like an idiot while standing there, but the jounin wasn't awake anyway, so it didn't really matter. It hurt a lot when he stared at the other. It hurt... somewhere... he couldn't explain it.

He sighed and walked in, feeling his eyes hurt. His vision was even worse than before. But, he had a job to do.

He leaned down to the other man, cupping his masked chin lightly. Forcing the other's eyes open, he sighed softly, before activating the sharingan.

He winced silently as the screams began to pierce the black and red skies again. This time... he really hadn't wanted to use much for the nin; he only made the illusions of his friends stab him with knives. He hadn't wanted to do anything himself.

But for some reason... things hadn't gone according to the plan. He'd seen how Kakashi's face twisted in pain when someone (Asuma) had stabbed him in the chest. And how he had sunken to the ground, gasping for breath. Then suddenly, he'd stopped the jutsu. He remembered that he had blinked and suddenly activated his Sharingan again. He... wasn't in control of his body.

"Why?" Kakashi asked as they once again found themselves under the same tree Itachi had used in his healing jutsu.

And for once, Itachi truly didn't have an answer. He looked down at the grass silently and Kakashi followed his gaze. The grass was light blue for some reason. It still had the green tinge to it, but it looked more blue than green.

"Are you trying to become--? No, are you trying to feel like a human again?" Kakashi asked silently. Itachi didn't say anything for a long time. But when he finally did, it shocked even himself of what he answered the jounin, "I'm tired..."

Kakashi blinked, "So... when you're not torturing me, you..." He didn't finish his sentence, but Itachi understood nonetheless. "No, " He said firmly to the older male, "I still tire from this, but less. And you get something out of it, so you have no need to complain."

Kakashi stayed silent after that.

It wasn't the last time Itachi used his genjutsu to heal Kakashi either. After that day he came regularly, mending the other's mind carefully as they talked about this and that. From simple things in life to little details of war.

Kakashi was surprised to find out that Itachi hated war, but that wasn't the only thing he'd found out. What surprised him the most was what Itachi told him about the massacre. He didn't say why, but he did say how the things worked out. From how he killed his best friend to how he didn't kill Sasuke.

Kakashi listened silently, feeling that the younger boy needed someone he could tell those things to. Though he did wince at a couple of gruesome details Itachi said. For some reason, he felt like a psychologist listening to a killer's confession (and in a way, it was so).

In return, Kakashi told Itachi about how he'd gotten his left eye. About Obito, Rin and the Yondaime. Itachi listened to the story, interested.

It wasn't long before they began to talk about things casually, though Itachi seemed to be more tired each time they met again. It unnerved Kakashi, but he said nothing. Instead, they talked endlessly about other things, still trapped in Itachi's jutsu. And Kakashi began to heal, until he was his former self again.

"...So, I went to find food, until Obito was trying to make a fire. Let me tell ya; he was NOT very good at it." Kakashi laughed softly, "I have no idea how he managed to burn himself from head to toe."

Itachi gave a weak smile, his face more pale than before. They were now sitting quite close to each other (because Kakashi just took a seat closer to him each time they started this) and Kakashi saw the tiredness in the other's eyes.

He frowned. "Maybe it's better if you stopped for today. I'm fine. I was fine two days ago already."

The younger gave an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry... but I wish to make sure that you're completely healed." Though he knew that the man was probably more better than before he went on his mission. In all truth, he enjoyed the other man's company. Deidara had been right... talking to someone outside the Akatsuki ring was much better.

Kakashi sighed; damn brat not knowing when to stop. Oh well, his life. "So anyway, tell me something about yourself again." The silver-haired jounin smiled.

And Itachi complied, telling the man about why exactly he massacred his whole clan.

Kakashi blinked at the sudden turn in conversation and... why the hell was Itachi telling him this? With each word Itachi said, Kakashi held his breath, feeling a tug at his lower stomach. In the end, all of it left Kakashi truly baffled. His vocal chords didn't work, his eyes didn't blink, even his mind was a complete blank.

The question why the Uchiha genius had killed off his entire clan, had been answered... to him. He had never guessed that he was the one who would find out the reason why. It was... a shock, to say the least.

Itachi still stared at him emotionlessly, looking as though he had not just told why he had betrayed his clan and killed them for the sake of the village. He didn't seem to be surprised about Kakashi's reaction either. He still looked tired, slightly sick, and emotionless.

Finally Kakashi's voice came back and the first words he said were, "You're delusional..." There was no way... no way, Itachi would do that to stop a war! No one could! A human's mind simply shouldn't be able to take such strain and grief. But he _had_ offered his sanity for the sake of a better world.

"Am I? I think no one, but myself is able to say that about me." Itachi allowed a weak smirk to grace his lips.

Kakashi was still frozen, his mind not registering the last five minutes. He swallowed lightly, feeling suddenly guilty. Guilty and ashamed. Guilty that he had accused Itachi so violently and guilty for attacking him because he thought him to be a criminal. Ashamed that his village could be fooled so easily, that they thought of Itachi as a criminal as well. The third had known, so why didn't he tell anyone? Why is Itachi not praised like a hero? He should be considered the hero of the world, for trying to stop a war. He should be in his village, with his baby brother. He should... still have a life for being so damn kind.

Kakashi turned his head away as he felt his eyes begin to tingle, eyes filled with unshed tears. He... he reminded him so much of Obito. Who sacrificed everything for the sake of his friends. Even his own eye.

Itachi sacrificed his sanity.

_It isn't fair_, he thought bitterly, forcing the tears back. The boy was so young when he had to leave everything. Younger than Obito even...

A sigh startled him from his thoughts and he turned to face the younger male. Said boy glared at Kakashi. "I gave my life up for the village. There's nothing to it. Don't fret yourself over such silly things. It was my decision alone. I was prepared for the consequences."

Kakashi frowned but said nothing. The boy was... naive.

Itachi raised an eyebrow elegantly. "Excuse me?" Kakashi sighed, "Nothing..."

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The next few times Itachi came and used his Sharingan again, Kakashi had been rather violent at telling him not to do it. He had objected to it, but finally Itachi had still been able to put them in the genjutsu (wow, wonder how?). He had asked the missing nin why did they have to be in it, if it made Itachi exhausted. The other had simply replied that if someone were to walk in on them talking casually in real life, then he'd be in much more trouble. He also told him that a certain green plant-man usually did those things.

Kakashi had still been a bit miffed at the situation when they talked through the whole session, seeing how Itachi gradually became weaker.

Though, he soon began to talk casually again.

They were sitting right next to each other this time; talking and laughing. It had happened so quickly and softly that they both still questioned if it had really happened. But when Kakashi turned to face the other with a masked smile and grabbed the boy's chin, he slowly brought their lips together. Kakashi's masked lips gently against the Uchiha's pale, uncovered ones.

Kakashi had let go of the frozen boy's chin a moment later, whispering, "You're not a bad person, Itachi..."

Something clicked and the genjutsu ended. Kakashi found himself in his cell again and he blinked at the sudden change. Itachi was no where to be seen either.

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A/N: Yaya, the kiss sounded a bit better in my head, but meh... Anyway, was it good? bad? both? Gaah, I'm sorry for the shortness of this! T-T And I have writer's blockage. Only things that help are big fat reviews from you guys :D

And what do you guys think, did I bring the KakaIta stuff in a little too early?

Oh and if you don't tell me if you like it or not, then I think I wont be continuing this. The end is pretty close (only about... 3-5 chapters or more), but I wont continue a fic that I don't know if people like. There's no point in continuing it then. Ja na~!


	7. Poker for Idiots?

A/N: This chapter focuses mainly on the other Akatsuki members! :3 I have some important news in the end so read them too, kay? Enjoy!

Listening to: WANTED by Monkey D. Luffy :)

Warnings: Mental torturing, AU. Possible, but not likely, sexual content. Some spoilers about Itachi... so people who only watch the anime, get out nao!

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 7 – Poker for idiots?**

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Itachi felt his lower stomach churn pleasantly every time he remembered the kiss. He was, after all, only a human.

He touched his lips softly, feeling slightly light-headed. It hadn't been a kiss; not a real one anyway. First; Kakashi's lips were covered and Second; it had been all in his head, nothing more.

So why did it affect him so?

This is... confusing, Itachi thought with a small frown. Maybe it had meant something to Kakashi? Maybe Kakashi now expected something from him? Maybe... it hadn't meant anything at all.

Pushing the thoughts into the corner of his mind, Itachi took out his kunai and began to clean them. He will not dwell on those thoughts like some... (he mentally cringed) love-struck academy girl. Besides, now he had other things to do.

With that in mind, he stood up and crossed the room to find his weapons. It wasn't like he liked what he was about to do. It would be unfair to Sasuke and so many other people. But it had to be done. Now more than ever.

He chuckled lightly; besides, he'd had it all thought out before he even brought Kakashi here. His mood fell a bit when he thought what Sasuke would say, or do. It wasn't fair. Before Kakashi had... well, he maybe wouldn't have, but now... he had no choice anyway.

But what would Kakashi-san say? _Nothing, if you don't tell him,_ a small part of his mind said.

In a disgusting way it reminded Itachi of a stranger talking to a little girl, saying, _Wont you come out and play in the dark, dear?_

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"ROYAL STRAIGHT FLUSH, UN!"

"No fair, Deidara! You freaking cheated!" Hidan shouted, making attempts to strangle the poor artist.

"I WON HIDAN, UN!" Deidara shouted with glee, running away from his murderer.

"No duh. You're an idiot, Deidara!" Hidan exclaimed, trying to slice Deidara again. "I demand another game! This time with Zetsu, so he will pay for my game! ...Or someone else then. Who's the lucky bastard that wants to play against me?!"

Zetsu smirked lightly, "I'd rather not, Hidan, considering the stakes. **You just dug your own grave!**"

"Shit!" Hidan said, a certain defeat in his voice. He looked up at the gleaming face of Deidara and stood up, "I am not going to do... that! It's too... and my god wouldn't... and I can't... and it's just... SHIT!"

"Aww, poor Hidan-kun, " Deidara pat his head lightly. "Dun worry, un. Sasori-sama wont go too rough on new toys." :3

"Deidara, you sick fuck..." Hidan muttered. "Does he even know about this?"

"Aa, indeed I do." Sasori smiled lightly, stepping out of the shadows. "Now come, my..._ pet._"

"Oh, you sick mortal bastards, you." Hidan growled, especially at Deidara. Pushing the blonde artist away (_"Have fun now, Hidan-kun!")_ he crossed the room to the other Akatsuki member.

"Yes..." Sasori all but purred and tied a collar on Hidan's neck, holding the end in his hand. "Now, will you come and play with me, Hidan-kun---"

"WHAT THE FUCK IS IT WITH TODAY THAT EVERYONE CALLS ME HIDAN-_KUN__!_!?" And he stomped off, dragging a surprised Sasori behind him.

"Soo..." Deidara then turned around to face the others with a smug grin. "Anyone else wanna play poker?"

"..."

"Oh come on! No one?!" Deidara asked incredulously.

"...I'd rather not, seeing what just happened." Kisame chuckled nervously.

"...Y-yeah, that was a bit too cruel, Deidara-sempai." Tobi whimpered.

"... **I can't believe you did that!**" Zetsu's black side laughed.

"If it brings me in any money, I'd play you. Until then, no." Kakuzu scoffed.

Deidara pouted, but then he brightened up, "Hey, I could go and play with Kakashi-kun, un! ...Oh wait, I can't, " He snapped his fingers lightly, "His mind is broken, un... Oh well... I could make him the prize for the next game!" He shouted suddenly.

"...Unfortunately you can't, Deidara. Only I'm allowed to do such things to him, since the Leader gave me the orders to _take care_ of him." Itachi said, as he walked out of the hallway. "But since I wont do such things, then I'm very sorry to crush your dreams, but _that_ wont happen to him." He ended coldly.

Deidara pouted again, "Oh yeah, break the party, 'Tachi-san."

"...Hn..." Itachi barely glanced at the others anymore and walked straight to the Leader's door.

"Hey, Itachi, you gonna make a report about your success?" Kisame grinned. "He hasn't been out of his room for the whole day, so... Just warning you, kay?" The other only made a sound similar to the one he'd made before and knocked, before entering.

It was dark, though there were torches lit up on the wall. He wasn't feeling nervous, he acted like he was NOT just going to cause some really big problems in this organization.

"Would Itachi-kun like anything to drink, before we continue?" Leader-sama, Pein, asked.

"No, thank you." Itachi politely declined, sitting down when Leader motioned him to. "Leader-san, Kakashi-san told me some interesting aspects about Konoha and it's situation..."

-

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It was fun seeing Hidan now walk around with a leash on, following Sasori around the cave, doing anything his 'master' told him to. True to Deidara's word, Sasori didn't make Hidan do anything that would make either of them regret later. Hidan even partially still had his own will too.

At first, Deidara was amused. He had won Hidan in a game of poker and then Hidan had to act as a slave to Sasori (though it didn't look quite a slave-master kind of relationship anymore). Receiving a few comments from the others and Hidan's face flushed bright red from embarrassment. The most that was hurt in this game was Hidan's pride.

He had been forced to leave his scythe in his room that day, to his disappointment. He would have loved to slice open a few of their members, especially one blond-haired kid who annoyed him to death!

"Hidan-san, "Sasori said quietly, leaving the -kun suffix for the moment. "Please go get me some tea." He softly fingered the end of the rope to Hidan's collar, the movement almost sensual, before he let it drop from his hands onto the floor. Hidan grunted in acknowledgment and went into the kitchen.

"Sasori-sempai, why aren't you humiliating Hidan severely yet, un?" Deidara asked with a pout. He had been hoping for more.

"Humiliating someone isn't really high on my to-do list, Deidara. I wouldn't get anything out of it. I'm not into that sort of kink. I'm just making him do small things that wont get him mad and what will be useful to me." Sasori said softly, a small smile on his face. "Though it is nice to see this side of Hidan-san as well..."

Just then, Hidan walked back into the room with the tea. He thrust the cup into Sasori's hands, "Here."

"Now, now, Hidan-kun." Deidara said, voice mischievous. "You should be calling Sasori master, right?"

Hidan glared at Deidara, eyes clearly saying, '_Don't push it! You're fucking lucky to still be alive.'_

"Well, he is your 'master', right Hidan, un?" Deidara knowingly pushed. Yeah, he wasn't afraid of Hidan. He was one of those people who lived fast and died young. And he was going to die _very_ fucking young! "You should call him so."

Hidan made a grimace, fists shaking. Sasori saw this and said, "Hidan-san, you don't have to call me master. You can call me by my name. Don't worry, I wont make you do anything that's really uncomfortable with you."

Hidan relaxed but his glare at Deidara didn't dissipate. Without turning to Sasori, he asked, "Sasori, can I kill that shitty excuse for an artist?"

Sasori, quite amused, said, "I'm sorry Hidan, you can't, much to my disappointment too. But Leader wouldn't allow it. If you could find another great missing-nin in his stead, then maybe you even could..." he quietly pondered.

Hidan sent a fierce grin at Deidara's way, "I think that can be arranged. Should I go out to search for a member right now, so I can savor Deidara's death after that?"

"...I don't know, you should ask Leader about these things, Hidan-san." Sasori said, disappointment showing in his eyes.

Hidan's smirk faltered and he went to a corner to sulk.

"Say, Itachi's been in the Leader's room for quite a while now." Deidara suddenly wondered out loud. "You guys think he's okay?"

There was a long pause, where everyone looked at each other for a moment. Then Kisame broke the silence, "Itachi Uchiha, may he rest in peace."

"Should we give him a proper burial?" Tobi asked.

"**Knowing Leader, he's most likely already turned Itachi's body to ashes and scattered it all around the cave already.**" The black side of Zetsu said. "Though I could go and see what is going on..."

"Why do you all think Itachi-san is dead?" Sasori suddenly asked. "Leader is too fond of Itachi to kill him off like that. And besides, we would've heard something if they started a fight."

"Sasori's right, actually." Hidan said with a grin. "And I would like to kill Itachi off myself."

"...Okay then... Anyone up to a game of poker?" Deidara grinned.

"..."

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Knock. Knock.

"...I'm rather busy..." Came a monotone voice.

"Ja, then I'll come back later."

"...Actually, you can come in, Kisame."

Kisame entered the room, his eyes landing on the figure on the bed. Itachi was cleaning his weapons. Kisame tried to hold back a grin; Itachi never cleaned his weapons unless there was going to be an important fight soon. He did so before they had left for Konoha too.

"What should I make out of this?" He asked, amused.

"Kisame, is it too much of a burden to ask you a favor?" Kisame tilted his head to the side; Itachi wanted to ask a favor of him? "No. Why me?"

"You're the only one I can actually somewhat trust."

Kisame snickered, "I guess I should feel honored then. So when's it happening?"

"Tonight."

"Hmm, in such short notice? Well, okay. Are you going to tell him yet?"

"...No, he'll find out when the time comes."

"...That sounds a lot like a stranger telling a small girl to---" Kisame shut up when Itachi directed a glare in his way. "Okay then..." He chuckled nervously. "...Y'know... we might not look like it, but we're all gonna miss you."

"...Kisame, you're not going to make me back out of this. It has to be done."

"...Well, at least I tried." Kisame grinned. "So, I'll wait for the right time, kay?"

-

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CLINK!

Kakashi silently woke from his slumber when he heard the cell-door open.

"Kakashi-san, get up," The monotone voice said with a slightly commanding tone.

"Itachi-kun? Didn't expect to see you here so soon. Came to get more?" 3

A barely noticeable blush came to Itachi's cheeks, much to Kakashi's pleasure. Itachi coughed slightly from embarrassment and tried to regain his composure. He said, "Get up, we have to go."

"Go?" Kakashi tilted his head to the side. "Go where?"

"..." Itachi didn't answer and began to walk out of the cell, Kakashi a few feet behind him, confused.

"Itachi, Is it time for me to die?"

Itachi abruptly stopped in his tracks and turned his head slightly to face the jounin, only to see him with a dead-serious expression. He silently contemplated on whether he should tell the jounin of his plans right now, or should he do so later. In the end, he decided to tell him later. "No."

And he turned around to walk quickly away from the spot and Kakashi, confused, followed him.

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A/N: Hiii guys! :D It's been a while, right? So anyway, the reason why I updated now was because I was NOT busy with deviantArt. Had I been there, I wouldn't have updated until after a year or so XD In the weekend I couldn't go to dA and so I started writing this again. Tell me, should I stay away from dA for a while? =3= I can't write properly cuz I have so many things to take care of there. So should I?

Anyway, for the fic, you can probably guess where this is going :) It's gonna have a happy, cliché ending and (_They all lived happily ever after. The end)_ it's coming soon. Just some handful of chapters to go now :D Becuz I wanna get to my other fics as well. Another reason why I update so slowly is because I'm just not into Naruto anymore (ONE PIECE RULZ!) ;3 Sorry for the grammar mistakes. English is only my second language :)


	8. A Trip Out Of This Small World

Listening to: America's Suitehearts by Fall Out Boy

Warnings: Mental torturing, AU. Possible, but not likely, sexual content. Some spoilers about Itachi... so people who only watch the anime, get out nao! And umm, I might've made Itachi a bit uke'ish :)

More detailed summary: Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 8 – A Trip Out Of This Small World/Into the Fire**

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The Akatsuki members all came to stand in a circle. Some came grudgingly while others came with a small interest. It was rare when Leader called them all together. But usually it meant he had some information about the Tailed Beasts and wanted to send a group after those demons.

"Not another fucking mission." Hidan groaned, still wearing his collar. He had hid it beneath his cloak for this occasion though and Sasori hadn't argued.

"Hidan, where's your _master_?" While Hidan was busy strangling the blond, Pein sighed and stared at the group. That was when he noticed something, "Where is Uchiha Itachi?"

"Oh, him?" Kisame asked with a bored voice, "He told me to tell ya guys that he quit Akatsuki... or something like that anyway."

"I see..." Pein was silent for a moment, contemplating the situation. "I will not tolerate disobedience. Hidan and Sasori will go after Itachi. And Deidara will go after the 3-tailed beast with Kakuzu. You two will receive further instructions at the local pub. Go!"

As Pein went back into his room, he failed to notice that Kisame went after Hidan and Sasori.

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"Where are we going, Itachi-kun?" Kakashi asked again.

Itachi ignored the question (yet again) and kept on walking. They had been walking outside for a few hours now. Itachi hadn't answered his questions and the only thing he had said for the past few hours was "Keep quiet".

Kakashi sighed and stared at the forest surrounding them. It was night time, so he really couldn't see much, but he could make out a few aspects. And the night sky sure seemed beautiful...

BAM!

Kakashi blinked. Had he just walked into a tree!?

"I think you should watch your surroundings more carefully, Kakashi-san." Itachi said, amused.

Kakashi smiled and scratched the back of his head, getting back up. "Yeah, well, I was kinda distracted by your behind." And he just knew that Itachi was blushing right now.

"I believe you're mistaken, because my behind isn't that far up in the sky." Or maybe not.

"Say, Itachi," Kakashi said now that he had gotten the other male's attention, "Where exactly are we going?"

"...Hn."

"I'm sorry, but I don't speak that 'Hn' language you and your brother speak, so maybe some real words, please?" Kakashi said, sounding bored.

"..."

Kakashi sighed, he should've guessed that he couldn't get something out of Itachi so easily. The boy talked less than Sasuke even.

"We're going to Konoha..."

Kakashi turned his head so fast it made a crack and he winced slightly, but ignored it. "What?! What are you talking about?!" If that was true then... then

"I'm going to bring you back to Konoha."

"I repeat; what?!"

Itachi glared over his shoulder and Kakashi blinked. He ran up next to the other and frantically asked, "Are you really gonna...? I mean, they could kill you!" _No! This was __not__ supposed to happen. Why do the good guys always have to die?!_

"So? Why would you care for a S-ranked criminal?"

Kakashi stopped walking for a while. It was true, no one would believe them if he told everyone Itachi's past. They would consider him a lunatic and put him in the loony bin, while Itachi will be sentenced to death.

"But why are you doing this?!" Kakashi didn't even know why _he_ was doing this. Why was he caring for this boy._ Well duh, you have a crush on him_, was his mind's obvious answer and he sighed. _Oh boy..._

"..."

Itachi was silent and continued walking. The jounin had no other option than to follow the other.

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Kakashi wasn't feeling good-- scratch that, he was feeling terrible. He had tried to talk Itachi out of it; out of walking straight into Konoha's borders to get himself killed, but he had no luck. The boy had made up his mind.

He cleared his head for a moment. Worrying made him feel sick. And now, think about the positives;

well, ...he'll finally get home again.

...

And that was fricken it! Nothing good was in store for Itachi. He was gonna get killed or imprisoned and then killed by Sasuke. Yeah, not a bright future for the boy, he snorted. Then again, Itachi had said that he had wanted to die by Sasuke's hand... No, just no! He still didn't have to die!

"Please do not dwell so much on my life, Kakashi-san. It will make me regret this." Itachi said quietly, politely.

"Then stop this nonsense!" Kakashi argued, "We don't have to return to Konoha for my sake! Let's just run away from the world; I'll come with you!" Had Kakashi been in the right mind, he would never have said something like that.

But Itachi stopped and stared at him with slightly wide eyes. Kakashi took this as a chance to step up closer to the boy and caress his cheek slowly. "Why do you want to cause yourself so much pain? You could've just let me go in the forest but you tagged along."

Itachi averted his eyes, "Because I didn't want to belong in the Akatsuki anymore."

"Liar," Kakashi said softly, which made Itachi's eyes widen again. "You could have done that before, but you did it after I came. You think you deserve the pain you're going to receive because of what you've done and you're willing to do it now because you love me so much that it hurts." Kakashi smiled, "Am I right?"

He didn't wait for an answer as he pulled down his mask and pressed his lips to the younger boy's. Feeling the boy tense, he pulled back slightly to look at him. The sight that greeted him certainly wasn't what he'd been expecting; Itachi was blushing... with the cutest dumbfounded expression Kakashi had ever seen. He half wondered if he should tease the boy about this, before he felt the other boy give him a small kiss of his own.

Kakashi smiled softly and took that as his cue to kiss the other again. "Come with me and we'll hide from everyone. We wont ever have to return to Konoha or Akatsuki again." He softly murmured against the other's lips.

Oh how sweet was the offer, but Itachi knew better. That would not solve anything. "As tempting as that offer may seem, it wont resolve any_thing!_" A blush covered his face. He had practically squealed that last part out, when Kakashi had nipped at a very sensitive part on his neck.

Kakashi smirked against the younger male's neck and gave a small lick, before staring at him in the eye. The Sharingan hadn't been active for a while now and Kakashi partly wondered if it was because the missing-nin was tired, before he pushed the other on the ground.

"Whoops, my bad." Kakashi smiled, holding the stunned boy on the ground. Itachi soon shook out of his stupor and said, "Kakashi-san, we don't have much time. We should get going."

"Yeah, " Kakashi agreed and sighed before crushing his lips against the other's. "Or, we could have some fun!" He grinned.

"Kakashi--!" Itachi was cut off as the other kissed him again.

-

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"Halt! Who goes there?"

Kakashi felt like everything was surreal now. They had still managed to go into the Konoha territory. _I wonder whose fault is that_, thought Kakashi sarcastically and glared at Itachi.

They were at the Konoha gates and Genma was the one _greeting_ them. What will he say? Hell, what will he _do_?! He didn't know _what_ he was supposed to say! Say 'Oh hi, Genma. I met an old aqueintance while I was captured and tortured but we met an understanding and here we are! :) By the way, I think he's hot!!' Kakashi blinked at the last part and quickly cleared his mind.

"Kakashi-san!" Genma blurted, eyes going over to look at Itachi and then back to Kakashi. Kakashi finally decided to act his casual self and raised his hand in greeting. "Yo, how's it going?"

"Wow..." Was all Genma could say, as he was frozen to the place, staring at the Uchiha. "We sent you to a normal little mission to investigate Orochimaru and you bring back the last Uchiha. I'm surprised. The stories about you weren't exaggerating at all."

Kakashi smiled and muttered under his breath, "Yeah, well I had some help with this..." He straightened up and said, "We are to see the Third, Genma, as you can probably tell. Besides, we've been walking all night, so we're very tired."

"Yeah, sure." Genma said, hesitatingly letting them through. He leaned next to the jounin and asked, "Is he tamed?" Kakashi chuckled, "You ask it as if he's a wild animal. But yeah, for now. And before you ask, a magician never reveals his secrets." And they passed the other into the city.

"Oh, you should probably put on a disguise." Kakashi said and Itachi nodded softly, before putting on a henge. Kakashi hoped _no one_ disturbed them while on their way to the Hokage, especially not a certain raven-haired _avenger_. Yep, things could go pretty bad if they'd run into Sasuke, of all people.

"KAKASHI!!" To say Kakashi was surprised was an understatement when he felt someone collide into his back and he was forced onto the ground. He gave a small grunt and saw the orange ball of joy that had collided into him. "Naruto, please refrain yourself from attacking random people on the streets."

Naruto looked up with a pout, "But Kakashi, you went on a mission... _WITHOUT ME!!!"_ He said it as if it was the worst thing that could happen.

"Believe me, Naruto. You wouldn't have wanted to come with me had you known what had happened." Kakashi said as he picked himself off the ground.

"But you went on a dangerous mission... _without me!!"_ he said again. It was then that Naruto saw the person next to them and stared. Short black hair, black _blank _eyes, normal clothes that you could buy anywhere, face didn't have any unusual markings or scars, nothing suspicious.

Naruto jumped up, "AHA, is this person a villain you captured on the mission?! I'll hold him down!" He already jumped up into the air to _capture_ the other, but Kakashi held the boy down.

"Naruto, stop it, please. He's not running, is he? Does that mean he's a villain?" He let go of the blond and he stumbled onto Itachi, who held the boy gently. Naruto pulled back with a flushed face and said, "You smell nice..."

Itachi gave a small smile and let go of the Kyuubi container.

"By the way, Kakashi-san, have you seen Sasuke around? I want to spar!"

Kakashi didn't miss the flinch Itachi tried to supress and answered, "No, I haven't." _And I hope I wont either_ "But maybe you can go and spar with Shikamaru?" Naruto grimaced, "But he's sooo... _lazy_. He doesn't want to even _move_. How can I spar with someone like that?"

"Why don't you attack him from behind like you did Kakashi-san? That way he wont have a choice." Itachi said with a smirk.

Naruto immidiately lit up and grinned, "Yeah, that's a good way to get Shikamaru to spar! Thanks stranger!" And he ran off to who knows where.

"Ah, what a troublesome boy." Kakashi sighed out. "What would we do without him..." He quietly pondered, before turning back to Itachi, "So, where were we? Had to get to the Hokage, right? Let's go!"

As they walked down the street, Kakashi couldn't help but ask something that had been nagging at him for a while now, "What will you do if they decide to arrest you, or kill you?"

Itachi kept up his blank face and answered, "Nothing." He blinked at the way Kakashi visibly flinched, before he understood. His voice had slipped into a monotone again. Lately he hasn't talked to Kakashi in a monotone voice, so he guessed it surprised the other.

"But you wanted to die by your brother's hand..."

"And I wont die before that either."

"..."

They were silent for the rest of the trip. Kakashi still didn't feel too good about practically _escorting_ Itachi to the gallows, but Itachi seemed to have made up his mind. Well, too bad for him, but Kakashi wasn't about to let go of the boy without a fight.

That in mind, he felt more confident when he knocked on the Hokage's door. A gruff "come in" and the door opened. Kakashi couldn't help but give a small glare in the hokage's direction when he saw him. _He_ had known everything, but _he_ hadn't done anything to stop... _anything!_ He had let Itachi's mind become corrupt and he had let him destroy his own life.

With a fake smile and a small "Hi", Kakashi got straight to the point, "I want you to let Itachi live again."

He felt the piercing gaze Itachi sent his way; _this_ had not been a part of their plan. But Kakashi ignored him and said to the Third, "Since you people are actually to blame for his life up until now, I want you to let him have his life back."

The Hokage didn't look surprised at seeing Itachi, though he was a bit surprised at seeing him with Kakashi. "Kakashi, we sent you to a mission and you come back with the Saviour of Konoha... Would you tell me everything that happened, please?"

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A/N: HIIII!! I can explain why I've been away! It's because I have exams coming up 3 But I believe this should make up for my absence the past few... months? Anyway, hope you will push this little button below and construct a good review for this chapter (even though I think this chapter wasn't THAT good...) **YOU ALSO WONT BE SEEING ANYONE FROM THE AKATSUKI ANYMORE! KISAME GOING AFTER SASORI AND HIDAN WAS THE LAST YOU'LL SEE OF THEM, SO YOU CAN THINK UP YOUR OWN ENDING FOR THAT :)**


	9. Away

Listening to: Share the World – One Piece

Warnings:Mental torturing, AU. Some spoilers about Itachi... so people who only watch the anime, get out now! And umm, I might've made Itachi a bit uke'ish :)

More detailed summary:Kakashi has been sent on a mission without his team, assigned by the third. (Sasuke and Naruto are still in Konoha and Sakura isn't a medical ninja yet.) His mission goes awry when on his path he meets Itachi and his partner Kisame. Because Kakashi knows of the Akatsuki (thanks to Jirayia) and Itachi thinks it's best if no one will get the information from Kakashi, the Akatsuki members take Kakashi back to the lair. Leader orders Itachi to take Kakashi to a cell and extract any information useful to them.

As the days pass and Itachi uses constantly his tsukiyomi sharingan on Kakashi, finally they both start to feel their mental, as well as their physical state slowly crumple.

**Chapter 9 – Away**

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After Kakashi had told everything to the Hokage, the Third had turned to Itachi and asked, "How do you feel about this, Itachi? Do you want a normal life back?"

"_Of course _he'd want it! Who wouldn't want a normal---" But Kakashi stopped, when the Hokage held up his hand in a sign for silence.

Itachi was almost amused at Kakashi when he slowly raised a fist, so that the Third wouldn't see, and shook it. The message was clear, _If you say NO, you're going to hell sooner than you'd think! …And I'm there with you, making sure you stay there!_

But that was not what made Itachi think this over. No, it was the words Kakashi had said before; _"Why do you want to cause yourself so much pain?" _In all honest truth, Itachi didn't want to, but when he was little, he had no choice. Beaten in with the rule of _Life hurts_, he slaughtered the Uchiha clan and joined Akatsuki.

But… he'd really like to start anew, from a new page, have friends and a family.

For a moment, a vision of him, Kakashi and Sasuke came into his mind. The image was so ridiculous, even in his mind, that he had a hard time keeping a straight face. But if that picture were reality, Itachi would do anything but laugh. It seems like a… good idea, really.

"Third." The Third blinked once and Kakashi suddenly felt like someone had thrown a heavy rock on him. He wasn't going to… was he?

"If it would be possible… could I start another life in another place? Because I probably can't go back to the Akatsuki anymore."

Kakashi wanted to kiss the man.

"A really wise choice, but not what I had in mind… You can stay here in Konoha, otherwise you could stir up some problems. Of course we need to have ANBU looking after you and it'll take a long time for the people to start trusting you again… But I think that's what the two of you would like best." The smile the Third had unnerved Kakashi for a bit, but he brushed it off.

Turning to Kakashi the Third said, "If it's not too much to ask, would you give Itachi-kun a place to live for a while? Until the Uchiha mansion is proper enough to be lived in again."

"Yes, of---"

"Excuse me… but could I permanently stay at Hatake-san's place. I do not wish to go and live… there."

The Hokage stared at his table for a while and then raised his head to look at them again, "If Kakashi allows it, then yes. Now leave, please. I have important head-aching papers to fill."

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Kakashi only hoped that Sasuke wouldn't find out about this. If he did, then… well, let's just say that he and Itachi both could start carving out their coffins now. Though Itachi walking around the village would certainly get noticed and he wouldn't be surprised if Sasuke would hear the rumours.

"What are you thinking about, Kakashi-san?"

Kakashi stopped _reading _his book and stared at Itachi. He was curiously staring at him with his black eyes; he hadn't used his Sharingan in a while. He looked quite cute on his couch.

"How Mary and Jones are meant for each other. They're complete opposites, yet they are so cute with each other. Kind of sounds like our relationship, doesn't it?"

Itachi flushed a faint pink, but coughed and said, "You weren't reading your book, Kakashi. What were you thinking about?"

"I don't know…" Kakashi teased, "I could recite the whole page I was reading at the moment."

Itachi smirked, "Then tell me the 23rd word on the page."

"Easy, it's _Love_. Here, I'll show you." Kakashi threw the book to Itachi smugly, knowing he was right.

Itachi frowned when he eyed the book carefully. Either his eyesight was getting worse or Kakashi has that book memorized and is just a really good liar. He preferred to think it was the second. Putting the book away, he leaned back suddenly, seeing that Kakashi was only inches away from his face. "Let's play a game, shall we?"

"What? _Spin the bottle_?" Itachi replied smugly.

"You know, that's a pretty good idea, but there's only two of us so… no. How about _Would you Rather_?"

"…What?"

Kakashi smirked and opened his mouth to answer, but didn't. He suddenly stilled and looked towards the door. Itachi heard it too; footsteps. Someone was _running_ towards this house.

"You… want to hide?" Kakashi asked, eyes not moving from the door.

"No need. Everyone will find out eventually anyway."

The steps came closer. If the person won't slow down, then he was going to crash in to the door… And in a heartbeat, Itachi knew exactly who it was outside.

BANG! BANG!

"KAKASHI! Are you in there?!" It was Sasuke's voice.

Kakashi sighed and went to the door. Looks like Sasuke had found out… and sooner than he had expected. He worriedly looked over to Itachi and then went to open the door.

"KAKASHI!! Please ope--- Augh!" Sasuke had almost fallen in when Kakashi had opened the door. His eyes quickly scanned the room, but didn't get to see much because Kakashi then covered most of it with his body, "My, my, what brings you here, Sasuke? I thought I already gave you your instructions." He said with a thoughtful face.

"Kakashi! Did you really capture my brother?!" Sasuke blurted out quickly.

Kakashi's eyes widened briefly, before he answered, "I didn't capture him, Sasuke." He said quietly.

"Then-Then the rumours---"

"He came with me willingly."

Silence fell like a ton of bricks, as Kakashi slowly moved away from the door, allowing Sasuke to see Itachi on the couch. He was staring back with the same black eyes, but unlike Sasuke's, his body was relaxed at the moment.

"You! DIE!!"

If Kakashi had not held Sasuke down at the moment, then things could've become rough. It took more than a little effort to calm Sasuke down. "Sasuke, calm down! We need to talk."

"I don't want to talk! I want to kill him!" He screamed.

"Now, now, let's not be hasty, Sasuke-kun."

"I'm not! Note how Itachi's not a bloody splat on your couch yet!"

Itachi smirked slightly.

Kakashi managed to calm Sasuke down enough, so he would sit still. Sasuke still glared at Itachi though, but had given up trying to get to him, because he knew he couldn't match Kakashi.

"Now Sasuke," Kakashi said as he took a seat across from him, "It would come out anyway, so we'll just tell you what really happened…"

"I wont believe you! He killed everyone!"

_A hour and a half later…_

"I don't believe you." Sasuke said, but his voice was wavering a bit.

"Kakashi…"

Kakashi turned to Itachi, "Hm?"

"…May I?"

Kakashi didn't say anything, but gestured for him to continue the story from his point of view. Itachi turned to Sasuke now, who was looking at him with something akin to disbelief and shock, maybe even sadness.

"Sasuke-kun…"

_It must be hard for him, _Kakashi thought and sullenly stared at them.

"I did not want to do such things."

"THE HELL YOU DIDN'T!!!" Sasuke screamed, tears running down his face. He tried to hide them, but to no avail.

Itachi sadly waited for a bit and then continued, "It would've lead to a war had I not done it… and besides, the village gave it to me as a mission…"

"I can't believe you… you… killed our family… and everyone else…" Sasuke's body was shaking uncontrollably now, "Your best friend… even. WHY THE HELL NOT ME TOO THEN?!"

"Because I couldn't…" Itachi said and dropped his gaze to the floor.

"If you could kill everyone else, then why not me?!"

"Because I cared too much for you. I just couldn't."

"CARED ENOUGH TO MAKE ME WANT TO KILL YOU?!"

"…One of us had to die… I preferred it be me. Of course, I wasn't going to make it easy for you, but now it's all over. Since it's a secret, then now almost everybody in this village knows about it, maybe a few other villages too by now."

"I can't…" Sasuke started, body shaking uncontrollably, "If only I could… Why didn't you tell me?"

"It was not meant to be like that…"

"I can't… I can't believe this!"

Kakashi sighed, "You can ask the Hokage if you really have to. He's the one who…" There was no need to finish that sentence.

"Yes, I think I'm going to do that…" Sasuke finally looked like he had calmed down enough to make rational decisions. Kakashi stood up and lead Sasuke to the door. Before he let go of him, he leaned down and whispered, "Keep in mind not to believe what everyone else say about this. Believe the ones who were there to see and hear it."

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About 20 minutes after Sasuke left, it was still silent. Itachi was staring at the floor and Kakashi was staring at the ceiling. Finally Kakashi had enough of it and sat down next to Itachi. Casually he pulled Itachi into a half-hug, "I know how you feel---"

"No, you don't know. Thanks for trying anyway."

"Anyway… it must be hard for you. But it's for the best. Would you want to eat? Watch TV? Bath?"

Itachi nodded slightly and said tiredly, "The last one sounds good."

"Hmm… May I join you then?"

"No."

Kakashi pouted, but it couldn't be seen by anyone because his mask was on. (:D)

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They didn't hear from Sasuke the rest of the day. Itachi was a bit worried, but Kakashi took his mind off of it by letting him in on the chunin exams.

They heard from Sasuke only the day after when he came to Kakashi's house again, before Kakashi left the house.

KNOCK! KNOCK!

Kakashi got up and opened the door. Sasuke was there, staring at the ground with an empty look. Kakashi stepped back to let the boy come in.

Itachi was sitting in the same place as yesterday; the couch. It didn't really surprise him that Sasuke came. But it did surprise him a bit when Sasuke entered without a word and walked straight towards him.

"Sasuke-kun…"

Sasuke didn't really react to it, but he stared at Itachi for a bit. The older of the two stood up and pulled Sasuke into a hug. As Sasuke's body started to shake from his sobs, Itachi looked at Kakashi, who smiled gently.

Looks like the perfect family picture could come true.

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A/N: OK, to tell the truth, I was beginning to get bored of this fic. I wanted to get this story out of the way quick, 'cause I have to start a One Piece fanfic ASAP! Sorry for the cruddy, rushed ending, but that was all I could think of. I'm stressed enough as it is, because school is starting now and I haven't done my summer homework, because I haven't found the right book. Tomorrow I definitely have to go to the library and seriously search!


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